What photoperiodic signal is provided by a continuous-release melatonin implant?

The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether the insertion of a continuous-release melatonin implant into ewes provides a short-day photoperiodic signal or acts as a functional pinealectomy (provides no specific photoperiodic signal but renders ewes incapable of responding to changes in photoperiod). Ewes primed with 60 long days (18L:6D) during the spring were moved to intermediate day length (13L:11D) for 66 days and then given one of five treatments: 1) short-day control, second drop in photoperiod to 8L:16D; 2) intermediate-photoperiod control, kept on 13L:11D; 3) pinealectomy and kept on 13L:11D; 4) melatonin implant and kept on 13L:11D; 5) melatonin implant and moved to 8L:16D. Mean number of estrous cycles per group and total duration of reproductive activity were determined. Ewes in all groups began to exhibit estrous cycles after the initial reduction in photoperiod. The number of estrous cycles and duration of reproductive activity differed among groups. The number of estrous cycles and duration of reproductive activity was extended in ewes receiving the second drop in photoperiod compared to that of the intermediate-photoperiod controls. Pinealectomized ewes had a number of estrous cycles and duration of reproductive activity similar to those of ewes maintained on the intermediate photoperiod. Melatonin implants increased the number of estrous cycles and prolonged reproductive activity in ewes maintained on the intermediate photoperiod; melatonin implants did not prevent the extension of reproductive activity in ewes receiving the second photoperiodic drop to the short daylength.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Endogenous circannual rhythms and photorefractoriness of testis activity, moult and prolactin concentrations in mink (Mustela vison).

Mink are seasonal photosensitive breeders; testis activity is triggered when days have less than 10 h light. Increasing and decreasing plasma concentrations of prolactin induce the spring and autumn moults. In a 5 year experiment, males were maintained under short days (8 h light:16 h dark) at 13 degrees C or long days (16 h light:8 h dark) at 21 degrees C, winter and summer conditions, respectively. Under winter and summer conditions, circannual cycles of prolactin secretion and moulting were observed at intervals of about 11 months. Recurrence of testis cycles was not evident. In a second experiment, males were maintained under an 8 h light:16 h dark cycle from the winter solstice or under 10 h light:14 h dark, 12 h light:12 h dark or 14 h light:10 h dark cycles from 10 February. Under 8 h light:16 h dark cycle, testis regression was slightly later than under natural conditions, indicating photorefractoriness. However, mink remained sensitive to light: the longer the photoperiod, the faster the testis regression. In a third experiment, males were transferred under 8 h light:16 h dark or 16 h light:8 h dark from 15 May (group 1), 12 June (group 2) or 4 July (group 3); males submitted to long days received melatonin capsules on the day of transfer. Increasing concentrations of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH) and testis volume were shown by half the males in group 2 and nearly all the males in group 3; the constant release of melatonin from implants was more efficient than short days; but in the three groups, prolactin concentrations decreased in the few days after short-day or melatonin treatment. Overall, the results demonstrate endogenous circannual rhythms of prolactin secretion, body weight and moulting. Although a refractory period to short days was observed, the annual cycle of testis activity totally relies on the annual changes in daylength.     

Lack of reproductive photoresponsiveness and correlative failure to respond to melatonin in a tropical rodent, the cane mouse.

Cane mice (Zygodontomys brevicauda) are year-round breeders in Venezuela. As shown previously, these animals are not reproductively responsive to variation in photoperiod. In the present experiments, male cane mice were maintained on long or short day lengths (16L:8D or 8L:16D, respectively) and challenged with each of three experimental treatments known to "unmask" reproductive photoresponsiveness in laboratory rats: olfactory bulbectomy, prolonged food restriction, and exposure as neonates to a single injection of testosterone. Variation in photoperiod had no inhibitory effect on the responses of cane mice to any of these three treatments, as assessed by the weight of their testes and seminal vesicles. A fourth experiment demonstrated that cane mice are insensitive to 10 wk of continuous exposure to pharmacological levels of melatonin, again as assessed by reproductive organ weight. Likewise, a fifth experiment documented a lack of response to 10 wk of late-afternoon injections of massive amounts of melatonin. The cane mouse apparently is unique among the animals challenged so far in these ways in that it seems to have no vestige of reproductive photoresponsiveness.     

Geographic differences for delay of sexual maturation in Peromyscus leucopus: effects of photoperiod, pinealectomy, and melatonin

Effects of short-day photoperiod, pinealectomy, and melatonin on sexual maturation were tested in Peromyscus leucopus from either Connecticut (CT) or Georgia (GA). Laboratory reared-stocks from CT and GA were exposed to short daylength (photoperiod) from birth or 25 days of age. At 12 wk of age, delay in sexual maturation was indicated in most CT mice by decreased testis length, combined testes weight, and seminal vesicle weight. Conversely, GA animals did not delay sexual maturation when exposed to short-day photoperiod from either birth or 25 days of age. These results indicate that responses to short daylengths differ for juvenile CT and GA populations. In a second experiment, pinealectomized or sham-operated CT males were exposed to short-day (9L:15D) or long-day (16L:8D) photoperiod from birth. Pinealectomy blocked the effect of short daylength on reproduction. Therefore, the pineal must be involved in the delay of sexual maturation observed for short-day CT mice. The effects of melatonin, a pineal gland hormone, were tested with chronic s.c. implants or daily injections. In CT mice given either melatonin implants or afternoon injections, sexual maturation was delayed. GA mice were insensitive to all melatonin treatments. Further, no differences in circadian organization (phase angle, duration of activity, period under constant dark) between GA and CT animals were apparent. Collectively, these studies indicate that melatonin is involved in the mechanism responsible for delay of sexual maturation in CT mice. Short-day insensitivity of GA Peromyscus leucopus probably results from a deficiency in the melatonin effector pathway and is not due to a disruption of circadian organization.     

Photoperiodic history and a changing melatonin pattern can determine the neuroendocrine response of the ewe to daylength

The reproductive neuroendocrine response of Suffolk ewes to the direction of daylength change was determined in animals which were ovariectomized and treated with constant release capsules of oestradiol. Two groups of animals were initially exposed to 16 or 10 h light/day for 74 days. On day zero of the study, when one group of ewes was reproductively stimulated (elevated LH concentrations) and the other reproductively inhibited (undetectable LH concentrations), half the animals from each group were transferred to an intermediate daylength of 13 h light/day. The remaining ewes were maintained on their respective solstice photoperiods to control for photorefractoriness. LH concentrations rose in animals experiencing a 3 h decrease in daylength from 16L:8D to 13L:11D while LH concentrations fell to undetectable values in those that experienced a 3 h increase in daylength from 10L:14D to 13L:11D. The photoperiodic response of the Suffolk ewe, therefore, depends on her daylength history. Such a result could be explained if the 24-h secretory pattern of melatonin secretion, known to transduce photoperiodic information to the reproductive axis, was influenced by the direction of change of daylength. Hourly samples for melatonin were collected for 24 h 17 days before and three times after transfer to 13L:11D. The melatonin secretory profile always conformed to daylength. Therefore, the mechanism by which the same photoperiod can produce opposite neuroendocrine responses must lie downstream from the pineal gland in the processing of the melatonin signal.     

Short day lengths affect perinatal development of the male reproductive system in the Siberian hamster, Phodopus sungorus.

The Siberian hamster, Phodopus sungorus, breeds seasonally. In the laboratory, seasonal breeding can be controlled by photoperiod, which affects the duration of nightly melatonin secretion. Winterlike, short day lengths induce gonadal regression in adult animals, and pups born and maintained in short days undergo pubertal gonadal development later than animals born into long days. However, to date there have been no reports of gestational photoperiod affecting fetal development of reproductive systems. The spinal nucleus of the bulbocavernosus (SNB) and its target muscles, the bulbocavernosus (BC) and levator ani (LA), compose a sexually dimorphic, androgen-sensitive neuromuscular system involved in male reproduction. The SNB neuromuscular system was studied in male Siberian hamsters maintained from conception in short-day (8 h light, 16 h dark; 8L:16D) versus long-day (16L:8D) conditions. On the day of birth, and at postnatal (PN) days 2 and 18, the BC/LA muscles of hamsters gestated and raised in the short photoperiod were significantly reduced relative to those of their long-day counterparts. Testes weights were not significantly different between groups until day 18. Thus, photoperiod exposure during gestation and after birth affects perinatal development of the SNB system in this species, and these effects can be seen as early as the day of birth. Because photoperiod did not significantly affect testes weights until PN18, these results suggest that either perinatal photoperiod affects fetal androgen production without affecting testes weight or it influences BC/LA development independently from androgen.     

Sexual maturation of ewes raised without ram exposure in a controlled lighting environment

Finn x Dorset ewe lambs (n = 70) born in the spring (March 28 to April 6) from two successive lambing seasons were evaluated for age at first ovulation in the absence of mature rams. Ewe lambs were born in a controlled, short light (8L:16D) photoperiod or in ambient light (13L:11D). At about 10 to 11 wk of age, ewe lambs were allocated to a short (8L:16D) or long (16L:8D) light environment. Plasma progesterone (P(4)) concentrations were measured as an index of first ovulation. First exposure of ewes to sexually mature rams was in November. Most ewe lambs (77%) ovulated before ram exposure. More lambs (P < 0.025) born in ambient light and raised in short light reached puberty with typical cycles of plasma progesterone compared to other treatments. Long days tended to retard the onset of puberty. Although pregnancy rate did not differ across light treatments, more ewes became pregnant from the ambient-light born and short-light raised treatment. Photoperiod is an important factor affecting the onset of sexual maturation and genesis of normal luteal progesterone secretion in the ewe lamb.     

Effects of photoperiod, melatonin administration and thyroid block on spontaneous daily torpor and temperature regulation in the white-footed mouse,Peromyscus leucopus

Summary Cold exposed (13°C) mice maintained on a short day photoperiod (9L:15D) became torpid 9 times more frequently than long day photoperiod (16L:8D) animals (Table 1). Mice on a short day photoperiod also exhibited a 26% increase in nesting behavior, a 9% decrease in food consumption and a 49% increase in norepinephrine induced thermogenesis (Table 2). No change in resting metabolism was observed. Similarily, chronic melatonin administration (subcutaneously implanted beeswax pellet containing 3.5 mg melatonin) elicited a 2.5 fold increase in spontaneous daily torpor relative to shamimplanted mice (Table 3). Mice treated with melatonin exhibited a 33% increase in nesting behavior and a slight decrease in food consumption. Although thyroid block (propyl-thiouracil) increased the incidence of daily torpor only slightly, it did effect an 11% decrease in resting metabolism, a 42% decrease in norepinephrine induced thermogenesis and a 5% decrease in food consumption. Thyroid block did not alter nesting behavior.     

Pineal and ovarian response to 22- and 24-h days in the ewe

Melatonin secretion in ewes was entrained by 22-h light-dark cycles whether of long (16L:6D) or short (6L:16D) photoperiod. In photoperiods of 6L:16D, a phase-delay of melatonin secretion was evident, leading to a dark-phase duration shorter than that found in 8L:16D. Early onset of estrus was induced in anestrous ewes kept in 8L:16D, but not 6L:16D, from 22 July compared to controls in natural light. In photoperiods of 16L:6D, the melatonin profile corresponded precisely to the dark phase. Early offset of estrus was induced in estrous ewes kept in both 18L:6D and 16L:6D from 18 December compared to controls in natural light. Thus, when the duration of melatonin secretion was appropriate to the long photoperiod (16L:6D), but with a constantly changing phase position, a long-day reproductive response was found. Activity-rest cycles were not entrained by 16L:6D; thus the synchronization of melatonin and activity-rest cycles does not appear to be essential for the induction of a long-day reproductive response. These results support the hypothesis that the duration, not the circadian-phase position, of melatonin is critical to the induction of photoperiodic effects.     

Plasma melatonin rhythms in euthermic marmots (Marmota flaviventris)

Plasma melatonin concentrations were measured in marmots (Marmota flaviventris) maintained under three short-day (4L:20D; 8L:10D; 10L:14D) and one long-day (14L:10D) photoperiod(s). Each animal had a daily rhythm of plasma melatonin with elevated plasma melatonin levels occurring during the dark period of the lighting cycle. There were no significant differences between any peak values during the night. The mean duration of elevated night melatonin concentrations was significantly different between long-day (16L:8D) and 8L:16D or 4L:20D animals (P less than 0.01). Daytime plasma melatonin levels were not significantly different among the photoperiods. These results characterize plasma melatonin rhythms in a sciurid rodent and demonstrate that this rhythm is modified by photoperiod. Therefore, the plasma melatonin profile could convey information about day length to the animal or, alternatively, the rhythm may be acting as a time-keeping mechanism for other physiological functions.     

Maternal transfer of photoperiodic information in Siberian hamsters. V. Effects of melatonin implants are dependent on photoperiod.

Photoperiodic information is transferred from female Siberian hamsters to their fetuses during gestation. Although maternal melatonin is known to be essential for the transfer of prenatal photoperiodic information, its specific role is not well defined. The duration of the daily melatonin signal, expressed as an elevation of serum melatonin levels in the maternal circulation, has been hypothesized to convey day length information to the fetus. If this hypothesis is valid, it predicts that identical maternal melatonin signals should affect the fetuses identically, regardless of the prenatal photoperiod. To test this hypothesis, adult females received melatonin in beeswax or beeswax alone. They were paired with males and housed in photoperiods of 12L:12D or 16L:8D. On the day of parturition, mother and young were transferred to constant light (LL). Young males were killed on Day 28 of life, and weights of testes were determined. Prenatal treatment with beeswax alone did not affect the nature of the signal transferred from mother to fetus; young gestated in 12L:12D and reared in LL developed small testes, while those gestated in 16L:8D had large testes. On the other hand, the effect of the prenatal melatonin treatment on postnatal testicular development in LL was inversely dependent on the prenatal photoperiod: testicular growth was stimulated in young gestated in 12L:12D, but inhibited in young gestated in 16L:8D. To verify that the melatonin pellets produced equivalent serum melatonin levels in adult females in 12L:12D and 16L:8D, unmated adult females were killed 6-10 wk after receiving melatonin pellets. Serum levels were elevated in both groups throughout the day and night.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Maternal transfer of photoperiodic information influences the photoperiodic response of prepubertal Djungarian hamsters (Phodopus sungorus sungorus)

Daylengths during the spring are repeated in reverse order in the autumn. For some photoperiodic species, a given photoperiod may be stimulatory for reproduction in the spring and inhibitory in the autumn. The mechanisms regulating this type of seasonal response have, until recently, remained a mystery. Horton (1984a) showed in Microtus montanus that the photoperiod experienced by the mother influences the gonadal development of her young after weaning. To determine if this phenomenon is characteristic of other photoperiodic rodents, adult Djungarian hamsters were paired on 16L:8D, 14L:10D, or 12L:12D. Young males born from these pairings were killed at 15, 28, and 34 days of age to assess gonadal development (testes weight). At 15 days testicular development was identical in all groups; by 28 days, however, males raised in 16L:8D or 14L:10D exhibited a greater degree of testicular development than those raised in 12L:12D. Next, females maintained on each of the three photoperiods throughout gestation were transferred, with their offspring, to the other two photoperiods at birth. Postnatal exposure to 14L:10D or 12L:12D inhibited testicular development in young that had been gestated on 16L:8D. Both 16L:8D and 14L:10D stimulated testicular growth in animals that had been gestated on 12L:12D or 14L:10D. Therefore, a) 16L:8D stimulates testicular growth in all animals, b) 12L:12D inhibits testicular growth in all animals, and c) the testicular response to 14L:10D depends on the photoperiod experienced by the mother during pregnancy.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Effect of constant-release implants of melatonin on seasonal cycles in reproduction, prolactin secretion and moulting in rams

Seasonal cycles in the size of the testes, blood plasma concentration of testosterone, FSH and prolactin, intensity of the sexual skin flush, timing of rutting behaviour and moulting of the body coat were recorded in Soay rams after s.c. implantation of melatonin contained in a Silastic envelope which increased the circulating blood levels of melatonin to 200-600 pg/ml for many months. Two groups of 8 adult rams were held under alternating periods of short days (8L:16D) and long days (16L:8D) to drive the seasonal cycles and the treatments with melatonin were initiated during the long or short days, and one group of 8 ram lambs was kept out of doors and given implants during the long days of summer (4 melatonin-implanted and 4 control (empty implants) rams per group). The treatments demonstrated that melatonin implants during exposure to long days resulted in a rapid 'switch on' of reproductive redevelopment similar to that produced by exposure to short days melatonin implants prevented the rams from showing the normal responses to changes in the prevailing photoperiod rendering them nonphotoperiodic; and long-term cyclic changes in testicular activity, prolactin secretion and other characteristics occurred in the melatonin-implanted rams; the pattern was similar to that previously observed in rams exposed to prolonged periods of short days. The overall results are consistent with the view that melatonin is the physiological hormone that relays the effects of changing photoperiod on reproduction and other seasonal features, and that continuous exogenous melatonin from an implant interferes with the normal 'signal' and produces an over-riding short-day response.     

Effects of photoperiod, melatonin, and the pineal gland on compensatory gonadal hypertrophy during postnatal development in the marsh rice rat (Oryzomys palustris)

The roles of photoperiod, melatonin, and the pineal gland in regulating the magnitude of compensatory gonadal hypertrophy (CGH) and other reproductive and non-reproductive organ growth during post-weaning development were examined in the marsh rice rat Oryzomys palustris. Juvenile rice rats of both sexes were left gonadally intact (control group) or unilaterally castrated (ULC) and housed on 12L:12D, 14L:10D, or 16L:8D. Within a photoperiod (14L:10D and 16L:8D, but not 12L:12D), growth of the remaining testis, but not the remaining ovary, as well as several additional organs in both sexes were significantly affected, suggesting that the compensatory hypertrophy of the testis is photoperiod-dependent. There was no effect of testis asymmetry on CGH as ULC of either testis in rice rats housed on 14L:10D resulted in a comparable increase of CGH. Melatonin implants in rice rats maintained on 16L:8D had little to no effect (CGH included) on most parameters examined. Both melatonin implants and pinealectomy (separate experiments) in rice rats transferred to 12L:12D prevented short photoperiod-induced effects on CGH, the growth of the reproductive organs and the Harderian glands. Evening melatonin injections had a significant inhibitory effect on the growth of the remaining testis (no CGH was observed) and all other parameters measured. Lastly, ULC did not alter the percentage of males which successfully mated compared to intact animals. Taken together, these data suggest that photoperiod, melatonin, and the pineal gland can affect and regulate reproductive (e.g., CGH in some cases) and non-reproductive growth during postnatal development in the marsh rice rat.     

Role of photoperiod and temperature in production of the oestrus-inducing pheromone in male wild mice

Ninety adult males divided in six equal groups were exposed to different photoperiods for 21 days. Exposures included natural light (ca 11 hr), long photoperiod (16L:8D) and short photoperiod (8L:16D). The first three groups received these exposures at room temperature (13-20 degrees C) while the remaining three at raised temperature (36-38 degrees C). Soiled bedding of the above males was introduced in the cages of unisexually housed noncyclic females and their potentiality to induce oestrus was assessed. It was noticed that the bedding of all the males proved to be a stimulus inducing oestrus in the majority of the females during the 7 day exposure. There was no significant difference in the number of females returning to oestrus following exposure to soiled bedding of different males. These results elucidate that environmental factors, especially light and temperature do not influence the production/release of the oestrus-inducing pheromone in wild mice.     

Androgenic activity in 15-day-old male rats: role of the maternal pineal gland.

Female Sprague-Dawley rats, exposed to a long (18L:6D) or a short (6L:18D) photoperiod from 21 days of age, were mated when they reached 55 days of age. On Day 2 of gestation, dams were pinealectomized or sham-operated. Pre- and postnatal photoperiods were identical, and offspring were killed at 15 days of age. Maternal pinealectomy had no effect when rats were kept on 18L:6D. Rats born to sham-operated mothers and kept on 6L:18D had higher testicular testosterone and androstenedione content than offspring raised on the long photoperiod. This stimulatory effect of the short photoperiod was blocked by maternal pinealectomy and was not dependent on the offspring's own pineal since it was observed in both sham-operated and neonatally (on Day 5 after birth) pinealectomized rats. When sham-operated mothers housed on 18L:6D were treated daily during pregnancy and lactation by s.c. melatonin injection, there was an increase in the testicular testosterone content of offspring. It was concluded that when rats are maintained on a 6L:18D cycle the maternal pineal gland enhances the testicular testosterone and androstenedione content in 15-day-old offspring. This effect is probably mediated by maternally derived melatonin. At 15 days of age, the pineal of the offspring had no influence on testicular function.     

Pineal melatonin rhythms in female Turkish hamsters: effects of photoperiod and hibernation

Daily rhythms of pineal and serum melatonin content were characterized for adult female Turkish hamsters (Mesocricetus brandti) exposed to long days (16L:8D, 22 degrees C) or after transfer to short days (10L:14D, 22 degrees C). The nocturnal peak of pineal melatonin content was found to be approximately 3 b greater in duration on short than on long days. Changes in levels of serum melatonin closely paralleled those of pineal melatonin. Thus, an effect of photoperiod on synthesis and secretion of pineal melatonin was demonstrated. In a separate experiment, female hamsters were induced to hibernate by exposure to a short-day, cold environment (10L:14D, 6 degrees C). During the 4 to 5-mo hibernation season, Turkish hamsters are known to display 4 to 8-day hours of torpor (body temperature = 7-9 degrees C) alternating with 1 to 3-day intervals of euthermia (body temperature = 35-37 degrees C). Little evidence of nocturnal synthesis or secretion of pineal melatonin was detected in females sampled during torpor. However, animals sampled during the first day after arousal from a torpor bout displayed melatonin rhythms no different in phase or amplitude from those seen in females held at 22 degrees C. Thus, despite the absence of pineal melatonin output during torpor, the pineal gland of hibernating Turkish hamsters produces an appropriately phased, rhythmic melatonin signal during intervals of euthermia.     

Entrainment of the melatonin rhythms in early postnatal lambs and their mothers

Although the developing sheep can produce an appropriately timed melatonin rhythm as early as 1 week after birth, it is not known whether the lamb is able to adjust its melatonin rhythm to a change in daylength. The ability of the young lamb to entrain its pattern of melatonin secretion to a new photoperiod was determined in the present study. Eight female lambs and their mothers were raised in long days (LD 16:8) beginning 2 weeks postpartum. At 7 weeks of age, the time of lights-off was advanced 8 hr, the short-day photoperiod then being LD 8:16; the time of lights-on remained unchanged. Concentrations of melatonin were measured in blood samples collected hourly on days - 1, 0, 2, 4, 6, and 13 relative to the light change. On day 0, all mothers and daughters had advanced the onset of melatonin secretion by at least 1 hr, and by day 13, 12 of 16 had completely entrained to the new photoperiod. The rate of entrainment among individuals varied; the mean rate for lambs and mothers did not differ. This study provides evidence that the melatonin-rhythm-generating system matures shortly after birth.     

Endogenous circannual cycles of ovarian activity and changes in prolactin and melatonin secretion in wild and domestic female sheep maintained under a long-day photoperiod

The present study examines the ovulatory activity of wild and domesticated ewes subjected to either a constant photoperiod of long days (16L:8D) or natural changes in daily photoperiod for 16 mo. The aim was to determine whether an endogenous reproductive rhythm controls seasonal reproductive activity in these sheep, and how the photoperiod might affect this. The effects of long-day photoperiods on long-term changes in prolactin and melatonin secretion were also evaluated. The two species showed changes in reproductive activity under the constant photoperiod conditions, suggesting the existence of an endogenous rhythm of reproduction. This rhythm was differently expressed in the two types of ewe (P < 0.05), with the domestic animals exhibiting much greater sensitivity to the effects of long days. A circannual rhythm of plasma prolactin concentration was also seen in both species and under both photoperiod conditions, although in both species the amplitude was always lower in the long-day animals (P < 0.01). The duration of the nocturnal melatonin plasma concentrations reflected the duration of darkness in both species and treatments. The peak melatonin concentration did not differ between seasons either under natural or long-day photoperiods.     

Photoperiodic stimulation of pubertal development in male deer mice: involvement of the circadian system

Pubertal development in prairie deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus bairdii) is accelerated by exposure of juveniles to a long-day photoperiod, and, conversely, retarded by exposure to short days. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the possible involvement of the circadian system in the photoperiodic regulation of puberty. Weanling males, previously housed on a short-day light cycle of 6L:18D, were subjected to a "resonance" protocol in which they received one of the following light cycles: 6L:18D, 6L:30D, 6L:42D, 6L:54D, or 16L:8D. Post-weaning exposure to cycles of 16L:8D, 6L:30D, and 6L:54D stimulated reproductive organ growth as measured at 6 weeks of age. Exposure to cycles of 6L:18D and 6L:42D failed to stimulate reproductive development. These data support the hypothesis that young male deer mice use a circadian rhythm of responsiveness to light to measure photoperiodic time and, consequently, regulate pubertal development.