title: The volatility of an alarm pheromone in male rats.
abstract: The volatility of an alarm pheromone in male rats. PHYSIOL BEHAV 00(0) 000-000, 2008. We previously reported that an alarm pheromone released from the perianal region of male rats is perceived by the vomeronasal organ and evokes stress-induced hyperthermia and defensive and risk assessment behavior. In addition, we recently reported that the alarm pheromone enhances the acoustic startle reflex (ASR). However, in contrast to our knowledge about such biological aspects of the pheromone, information concerning the physical character of the alarm pheromone is extremely limited. In this study, we investigated the volatility of the alarm pheromone using enhancement of the ASR as an index of the pheromone effect. The alarm pheromone enhanced the ASR when it was presented at a distance of 10 mm but not at 200 mm. In addition, the pheromone effect was observed even after the pheromone was trapped in the adsorbent (Tenax) and then extracted using purified water. These results suggest that the alarm pheromone is both volatile and water soluble.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Veterinary Ethology, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 1-1-1 Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan. ahinaga@mail.ecc.u-tokyo.ac.jp
authors.forename: Hideaki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Inagaki
authors.forename: Kayo
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: Yasushi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kiyokawa
authors.forename: Takefumi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kikusui
authors.forename: Yukari
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Takeuchi
authors.forename: Yuji
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Mori
mesh_terms: D000161:Acoustic Stimulation; D000327:Adsorption; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D008297:Male; D010675:Pheromones / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000502:physiology*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013216:Reflex, Startle / Q000502:physiology*; D055139:Sensory Gating / Q000502:physiology; D014835:Volatilization
chemical_list: D010675:Pheromones