Schellinck H M, Rooney E, Brown R E
Department of Psychology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Physiol Behav. 1995 May;57(5):1005-8. doi: 10.1016/0031-9384(94)00353-7.
This study investigates whether differences in urinary odors of two major histocompatibility complex (MHC) congenic strains of mice reared in germfree conditions could be detected by male Sprague-Dawley rats in a habituation-dishabituation procedure. Rats were tested for their ability to discriminate between urine odors from one of the following pairs: (a) MHC congenic mice (B6 and B6-H-2k) housed in conventional conditions; (b) MHC congenic mice (B6 and B6-H-2k) raised in a germfree environment; (c) genetically identical mice maintained in conventional housing; or (d) genetically identical mice raised in a germfree environment. The urine odors of mice from the two MHC congenic strains raised in conventional housing were discriminable, but the urine odors of MHC congenic mice raised in a germfree environment were not discriminable. The odors of genetically identical mice, whether housed conventionally or under germfree conditions, were not discriminable. These results indicate that germfree rearing influences the urinary odors of individuality in MHC congenic mice. We discuss the possibility that the disparate findings from previous studies are a result of the methodologies employed.
本研究调查了在无菌条件下饲养的两种主要组织相容性复合体（MHC）同基因系小鼠的尿液气味差异，是否能被雄性斯普拉格-道利大鼠在习惯化-去习惯化程序中检测到。对大鼠区分以下几组尿液气味的能力进行了测试：（a）饲养在常规条件下的MHC同基因小鼠（B6和B6-H-2k）；（b）饲养在无菌环境中的MHC同基因小鼠（B6和B6-H-2k）；（c）饲养在常规环境中的基因相同的小鼠；或（d）饲养在无菌环境中的基因相同的小鼠。饲养在常规条件下的两种MHC同基因系小鼠的尿液气味是可区分的，但饲养在无菌环境中的MHC同基因小鼠的尿液气味是不可区分的。基因相同的小鼠，无论饲养在常规条件下还是无菌条件下，其气味都是不可区分的。这些结果表明，无菌饲养会影响MHC同基因小鼠个体的尿液气味。我们讨论了先前研究结果不同的可能性是所采用方法的结果。
