Ferris C F, Meenan D M, Axelson J F, Albers H E
Physiol Behav. 1986;38(1):135-8. doi: 10.1016/0031-9384(86)90143-5.
Golden hamsters communicate dominance status by flank marking, a behavior that is dependent upon vasopressin-sensitive neurons in the anterior hypothalamus-medial preoptic area (AH-MPOA). The purpose of the present study was to investigate whether arginine vasopressin (AVP) and an antagonist of AVP could alter or reverse dominant/subordinate relationships in pairs of hamsters. Microinjection of AVP into the AH-MPOA of subordinate hamsters dramatically increased their flank marking despite the presence of their dominant partners. Conversely, microinjection of the AVP antagonist into the AH-MPOA of dominant hamsters blocked flank marking in the presence of their subordinate partners. Surprisingly, the untreated subordinate hamsters significantly increased their own flank marking when tested with their dominant partners treated with the AVP antagonist, thereby reversing the pattern of flank marking normally seen in dominant/subordinate relationships. However, the effect of AVP and the AVP antagonist were limited to the day of treatment. When flank marking behavior was reversed in a pair of hamsters by treatments for three consecutive days, the pair immediately displayed the original dominant/subordinate behavior when treatment was stopped.
金黄地鼠通过胁腹标记来传达支配地位，这种行为依赖于下丘脑前部-内侧视前区（AH-MPOA）中对血管加压素敏感的神经元。本研究的目的是调查精氨酸血管加压素（AVP）及其拮抗剂是否能改变或逆转成对地鼠的主导/从属关系。向下属地鼠的AH-MPOA中微量注射AVP，尽管其主导伙伴在场，但其胁腹标记行为仍显著增加。相反，向主导地鼠的AH-MPOA中微量注射AVP拮抗剂，在其从属伙伴在场时会阻止胁腹标记行为。令人惊讶的是，当用AVP拮抗剂处理过的主导伙伴与未处理的从属伙伴进行测试时，未处理的从属伙伴自身的胁腹标记显著增加，从而逆转了主导/从属关系中通常出现的胁腹标记模式。然而，AVP和AVP拮抗剂的作用仅限于处理当天。当通过连续三天的处理使一对地鼠的胁腹标记行为发生逆转时，停止处理后，这对地鼠立即表现出原来的主导/从属行为。
