Romero L M, Dean S C, Wingfield J C
Department of Zoology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, 98195, USA.
Horm Behav. 1998 Dec;34(3):239-47. doi: 10.1006/hbeh.1998.1474.
It is unclear whether the behavioral effects of peptides in laboratory studies always reflect natural conditions. Here we test whether we can detect measurable behavioral changes after rapidly injecting peptides into the brains of wild birds. We used a modified stereotaxic-like technique to inject corticotrophin-releasing factor (CRF) and arginine vasotocin (AVT, the nonmammalian form of arginine vasopressin), two hormones important in the stress response, into the brains of wild, freely behaving, male white-crowned sparrows (Zonotrichia leucophrys). We then monitored subsequent territorial behavior to determine whether CRF or AVT altered this behavior. Surprisingly, the potent stressors of capture and surgery did not eliminate territorial behavior, with many birds resuming territorial defense within 60-90 min after surgery. Centrally acting CRF, however, significantly reduced territorial defense whereas centrally acting AVT had no effect. These results indicate that the behavioral affects of peptides can be studied under natural conditions.
尚不清楚实验室研究中肽的行为效应是否总能反映自然条件。在此，我们测试快速将肽注射到野生鸟类大脑后是否能检测到可测量的行为变化。我们使用一种改良的类似立体定位的技术，将促肾上腺皮质激素释放因子（CRF）和精氨酸加压催产素（AVT，精氨酸加压素的非哺乳动物形式）这两种在应激反应中重要的激素，注射到自由活动的野生雄性白冠雀（Zonotrichia leucophrys）大脑中。然后我们监测随后的领地行为，以确定CRF或AVT是否改变了这种行为。令人惊讶的是，捕捉和手术等强大的应激源并未消除领地行为，许多鸟类在手术后60 - 90分钟内就恢复了领地防御。然而，中枢作用的CRF显著降低了领地防御，而中枢作用的AVT则没有效果。这些结果表明，可以在自然条件下研究肽的行为影响。
