Progesterone receptor activation signals behavioral transitions across the reproductive cycle of the female rabbit |
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Authors: | Hoffman K L González-Mariscal G |
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Affiliation: | Centro de Investigación en Reproducción Animal, CINVESTAV-Universidad Autónoma de Tlaxcala, Adpo Postal 62, Tlaxcala, Tlax. 90000 México. rexvitro@hotmail.com |
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Abstract: | The female rabbit is an exceptional experimental model to define mechanisms by which progesterone (P) controls the expression of reproductive behaviors. In the rabbit, the rise in P levels during pregnancy inhibits estrous scent marking ("chinning"), stimulates the excavation of a nest burrow ("digging"), and primes behaviors later used for nest construction. The pre-parturient fall of P triggers the construction of a straw nest ("straw carrying") that is lined with hair that she pulls from her own body ("hair pulling"). These behaviors can be replicated in ovariectomized (ovx) females given a schedule of estradiol (E) and P that mimics hormone levels during pregnancy (E from days 0 to 4, E + P from days 5 to 17, E from days 18 to 27). We administered PR antagonists RU486 or CDB(VA)2914 to ovx female rabbits during either the initial (days 5-11) or late (days 12-17) phases of P treatment, to determine the role of PR activation in coordinating the expression of these behaviors. Both antiprogestins attenuated the P-mediated decline in chinning and increase in digging when administered during days 5-11. When given across days 12-17, both antiprogestins triggered an early decline in digging, the onset of nest building in some Ss, and the reinstatement of chinning. These results point to a central role of PR activation for establishing and maintaining the behavioral phenotype of pregnancy, and for the behavioral transition from pregnancy to estrus. |
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Keywords: | Maternal behavior Rabbit Nest building Sexual behavior Proceptive behavior Scent marking RU486 CDB(VA)2914 RTI3021-012 |
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