Reproductive success, postpartum maternal behavior, and masculine sexual behavior of neonatally androgenized female hamsters.
Sex differences in maternal behavior induced by pup stimulation (sensitization) have been reported for rats and hamsters and may be affected by the presence or absence of perinatal androgen treatment. Postpartum maternal behavior and litter survival in golden hamsters treated with testosterone propionate (TP) as neonates were studied. A high dose of TP (300 micrograms)1 eliminated feminine reproductive capacity when given on Day 2 or 4 postpartum and had no discernible effect on Day 12. Treatment on Days 6, 8, or 10 resulted in treatment day-dependent deficiencies in reproductive success which fell short of sterility in most females. These deficiencies included low birth weight, weight gain, and higher litter losses than controls. However, the maternal behavior of TP dams, as measured by retrieval and crouching, appeared to be normal. The disparity between delivery and successful rearing of normal-weight young may include uterine incompetence, lactation deficiency, and hypercannibalism. Behavioral masculinization was a more sensitive index of neonatal androgen action than any aspect of defeminization, but the two phenomena were dissociated in individuals.
D000818:Animals; D002190:Cannibalism; D006224:Cricetinae; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004971:Estrus / Q000187:drug effects; D005260:Female; D005298:Fertility / Q000187:drug effects*; D007774:Lactation / Q000187:drug effects; D008425:Maternal Behavior; D008647:Mesocricetus; D011247:Pregnancy; D012726:Sexual Behavior, Animal / Q000187:drug effects*; D013739:Testosterone / Q000494:pharmacology*
D013739:Testosterone