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Neurobiology pp 165–179Cite as

Prenatal Androgens in Female Rats and Adult Mounting Behaviour

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Part of the book series: Proceedings in Life Sciences ((LIFE SCIENCES))

Abstract

Adult female rats given testosterone propionate (TP) will easily display mounting and intromission behaviour when placed with an oestrous female rat (e.g. Beach 1968; Ward and Sperr 1969; Södersten 1972). It has been suggested that such mounting behaviour, like that of normal male rats (e.g. Goy and McEwen 1980; Baum 1979; Feder 1984), required prenatal “androgenic organization” of neural tissues which mediate copulatory behaviour. This idea was derived from experiments with female fetuses in which the action of testosterone or its metabolites was suppressed by anti-androgens or antiaromatase substances. As adults such females were found to display less (TP-induced) mounting behaviour (Stewart et al. 1971; Ward and Renz 1972) and/or more ‘feminine’ behaviour (Clemens and Gladue 1978; Clemens et al. 1978; Gladue and Clemens 1978).

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Endocrinology, Growth and Reproduction, Faculty of Medicine, Erasmus University, P.O. Box 1738, 3000 DR, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

    A. K. Slob & J. T. M. Vreeburg

Authors
  1. A. K. Slob
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  2. J. T. M. Vreeburg
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Animal Physiology, University of Liège, 22, Quai Van Beneden, B-4020, Liège, Belgium

    Raymond Gilles

  2. Laboratory of Biochemistry, University of Liège, 17, Place Delcour, B-4020, Liège, Belgium

    Jacques Balthazart

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© 1985 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Slob, A.K., Vreeburg, J.T.M. (1985). Prenatal Androgens in Female Rats and Adult Mounting Behaviour. In: Gilles, R., Balthazart, J. (eds) Neurobiology. Proceedings in Life Sciences. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-87599-1_12

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-87599-1_12

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-87601-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-87599-1

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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