Exogenous androgen activates female behavior in noncopulating, prenatally stressed male rats. 1977

I L Ward

Male copulatory behavior was severely impaired in the male offspring of female rats stressed during pregnancy. This deficiency persisted even after castration and prolonged treatment with testosterone propionate and after exposure to electric skin shock. However, androgen treatment effectively activated female lordotic behavior in a large percentage of prenatally stressed males but not in any control animals and in only a negligible number of postnatally stressed males. Although prenatal stress demasculinizes and feminizes behavior, no modifications of reproductive morphology were detectable. It is postulated that prenatal stress alters normal sexual behavior differentiation by attenuating testosterone secretion from the fetal testes.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D008297 Male Males
D009929 Organ Size The measurement of an organ in volume, mass, or heaviness. Organ Volume,Organ Weight,Size, Organ,Weight, Organ
D011247 Pregnancy The status during which female mammals carry their developing young (EMBRYOS or FETUSES) in utero before birth, beginning from FERTILIZATION to BIRTH. Gestation,Pregnancies
D011270 Pregnancy, Animal The process of bearing developing young (EMBRYOS or FETUSES) in utero in non-human mammals, beginning from FERTILIZATION to BIRTH. Animal Pregnancies,Animal Pregnancy,Pregnancies, Animal
D002369 Castration Surgical removal or artificial destruction of gonads. Gonadectomy,Castrations,Gonadectomies
D003307 Copulation Sexual union of a male and a female in non-human species. Copulations
D004542 Ejaculation The emission of SEMEN to the exterior, resulting from the contraction of muscles surrounding the male internal urogenital ducts. Ejaculations
D004597 Electroshock Induction of a stress reaction in experimental subjects by means of an electrical shock; applies to either convulsive or non-convulsive states. Electroconvulsive Shock,Electroconvulsive Shocks,Electroshocks,Shock, Electroconvulsive,Shocks, Electroconvulsive
D004822 Epididymis The convoluted cordlike structure attached to the posterior of the TESTIS. Epididymis consists of the head (caput), the body (corpus), and the tail (cauda). A network of ducts leaving the testis joins into a common epididymal tubule proper which provides the transport, storage, and maturation of SPERMATOZOA.
D005260 Female Females

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