Pre-exposure to Femaler Chemosignals or Intracerebral GnRH Restores Mating Behavior in Naive Male Hamsters with Vomeronasal Organ Lesions

摘要

Chemosensory input is essential for mating in male hamsters and the vomeronasal organ is critical to mating in naive males. In studies to investigate the convergence of vomeronasal chemosensory input and the neurohormone gonadotrophin releasing hormone (GnRH), we have unexpectedly found that pre-exposure to pheromone-containign chemosignals from female hamsters will also eliminate mating deficits normally seen in naive male hamsters with vomeronasal organs removed (VNX). In the present studies, naive-intact and native-VNX male humsters were given intracterebroventricular injections of GnRH or salinne and exposed to female pheromones found in hamster vaginal fluid (HVF) or to water 40 min prior to a 5 min mating test. VNX males given saline injections and exposed to water had severe mating deficits, but VNX males given saline injections and exposed to HVF mated normally. As shown previously, males given GnRH injections and exposed to water also mated normally. HVF exposure prior to a mating test apparently acted to compensate for the lack of vomeronasal input in these males.