Effects of adrenalectomy on rhythmic and non-rhythmic aggressive behavior in the male golden hamster.
Male golden hamsters, adrenalectomized and maintained by subcutaneous implants od deoxycorticosterone-acetate (adx-DOCA), show a loss of the nocturnal rhythm in aggression seen in sham operated (sham-op) animals. A similar loss of the nocturnal aggression rhythm is evident in hamsters adrenalectomized and implanted with separate pellets of DOCA and cortisol-acetate (adx-DOCA-cortisol). However, while Adx-DOCA animals do not differ from sham-op animals in the level of aggression summed over all tests (overall aggression), the overall aggression levels of the adx-DOCA-cortisol animals are significantly higher than the levels of either the adx-DOCA or sham-op animals. Nocturnal rhythms in locomotor activity persist in all three groups. It is suggested that circadian rhythms of the pituitary-adrenocoritcal axis are important for the expression of the aggression rhythm. A possible mechanism of action is discussed.
D000311:Adrenal Glands / Q000502:physiology*; D000315:Adrenalectomy; D000374:Aggression / Q000502:physiology*; D000378:Agonistic Behavior / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D000818:Animals; D002940:Circadian Rhythm / Q000187:drug effects; D003345:Corticosterone / Q000494:pharmacology; D006224:Cricetinae; D003624:Darkness; D004343:Drug Implants; D006801:Humans; D008027:Light; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology; D012919:Social Behavior
D004343:Drug Implants; D003345:Corticosterone