Male sexual behaviour not abolished after medial preoptic lesion in adult rats

Abstract

N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA) was injected into the medial preoptic area (mPOA) of 10 rats to destroy the neurones in this region. Male sexual behaviour was scored before, and on days 2, 6, 10, 17, 24 and 31 after the administration of NMDA. The neurones in the injection site were destroyed in all the rats, but male sexual behaviour was only transiently reduced in the animals with lesions largely restricted to the mPOA. These findings are in contrast to the earlier reports of permanent suppression of sexual behaviour after electrolytic lesion, with damage to the neurones and fibres of passage. The present study shows that the mating behaviour could be expressed even after the destruction of the neurones in the mPOA.