Hormonal restoration of masculine sexual behavior in long-term castrated B6D2F1 mice.

In contrast to the facilitative effects reported for other rodents, testosterone treatment at the time of castration previously was reported to inhibit masculine sexual behavior in male B6D2F1 mice. Males of this genotype vary in their behavioral response to castration. Some castrates retain sexual behaviors for many weeks after surgery, whereas others do not. In the present study, we sought to determine the effects of exogenous steroid hormone treatment on castrated B6D2F1 mice that had ceased to show copulatory behavior. Testosterone propionate and estradiol benzoate restored copulatory behavior to precastration levels in B6D2F1 males that did not retain sexual behaviors after castration.