Temporal relationships between shock treatment and intermale fighting behaviour in laboratory mice. Effects of modifying testicular and adrenal functions

Abstract

The three experiments of this series were conducted to (1) examine subsequent effects of electric shock on intermale fighting in previously isolated mice, and (2) determine to what extent post-shock fighting is affected by manipulations of the pituitary-gonadal and pituitary-adrenocortical axes. In experiment 1 it was found that shock treatment significantly increases fighting 1 2 to 1 h later. Experiment 2 showed that castration alone does not affect post-shock fighting, whereas adrenalectomy and castration combined with adrenalectomy both inhibit such fighting. Experiment 3 showed that pretreatment with testosterone increases fighting in intact males, but fails to restore post-shock fighting in adrenalectomized and castrated-adrenalectomized males. These findings suggest that (1) the pituitary-adrenocortical axis plays an important role in controlling post-shock fighting in mice, and (2) the inhibition of post-shock fighting by adrenalectomy and castration combined with adrenalectomy is not a result of the loss of adrenal testosterone which accompanies these operations.