Chapter 4: Neuroendocrinology of Sexual Behavior
in the Male
In the last chapter, we looked at the role of primarily estrogen
and progesterone in stimulating proceptive and receptive aspects of
female sex behavior.
In our consideration of male sex behavior, we will consider how
the primary androgen, testosterone, is secreted by the testes. And
then, further, the role of two metabolites of testosterone, estrogen
and 5a-dihydrotestosterone (DHT), to the control of sexual motivation
andcopulatory behavior in the adult male. We will then go on to
consider what brain regions play an important role in mediating the
various aspects of male copulation and the role of select
neuropeptides in stimulating this response.
How do we define male sex behavior?
Male sex behavior is defined as having two major components
(similar to what we discussed in females): 1) precopulatory
behaviors, and 2) copulatory behaviors. A related concept, that is
important to our understanding of male sex behavior, is the role of
sexual motivation, or sexual desire.
Precopulatory Behaviors
* precopulatory behaviors can range from a few seconds of
sniffing odors secreted by a female to elaborate displays of
courtship behaviors (that occur in a variety of fish and bird
species)
* in rats, females secrete one class of odors that stimulate the male
to investigate the anogenital region of the female
(chemoinvestigation) and another class to stimulate the male to mount
the female (copulation); during this period of precopulatory
investigation, both males and female may emit ultrasonic
vocalizations that augment each others' excitation as well as their
own; so sniffing and chasing the female as well as
producing ultrasonic vocalizations are the major precopulatory
behaviors shown by a male rat
* the purpose of precopulatory behaviors is to stimulate sexual
excitation in an individual and in his or her partner
Copulatory Behaviors
* precopulatory behaviors are followed by copulatory behaviors;
copulatory behaviors are categorized into three main groups:
* mounts: male mounts a sexually receptive female
* intromissions: following mounting, a male will show penile erection
and insertion of the penis into the vagina
* after a series of mounts and intromissions, a male will show an
ejaculation: explusion of a copulatory "plug" which is composed of
secretions from the prostate, seminal vesicle, and coagulating gland
plus sperm from the testes; the copulatory plug ensures that the
sperm will pass into the uterus, increasing the likelihood that
fertilization of ova will occur
* In rats, as is true of many other species, a male will display
several mounts and intromissions before ejaculating. The male will
mount a female, intromit, and then dismount after each intromission;
the male will show a series of mounts with intromissions before
ejaculating. Following ejaculation, there is a refractory period in
which the male does not engage in sexual activity with the female
(this period is called postejaculatory interval). After several
ejaculations with a female, the male will stop mating; sexual
satiety.
If we are interested in understanding how hormones can affect male
sex behavior, then we have to have an idea of how we can quantify
male copulation. There are several measurements that can be
quantified with respect to male copulation:
* measure the amount of time the male spends sniffing female's
odors (chemoinvestigation)
* mount latency: amount of time it takes for a male to mount
the female for the first time
* record the number of mounts shown by a male during a
particular period of time
* record the number of intromissions as well as the length
of time between each intromission (interintromission
interval) and even the number of intromissions that precede an
ejaculation
* ejaculation latency as well as the postejaculatory
interval (which is the time from the occurrence of the
ejaculation to the next mount); in animals that ejaculate multiple
times, we can determine the number of ejaculations
shown during a given mating test
Precopulatory and copulatory behaviors are clearly apparent when
watching males engage in sex behavior. Less clear, but equally
important, is the male's desire to engage in sexual activity.
* sexual motivation: can be defined as a male's inclination to
seek out and approach a female for the purpose of mating
* sexual motivation differs from the ability to engage in a sexual
act. Your book describes the example of a diabetic man whose
penile erectile capacity is compromised due to damage to the
innervation of erectile tissues of the penis; so the man cannot
engage in sexual activity, but this is due to the fact that he cannot
maintain an erection not because he is uninterested in sexual
activity; so when an individual does not engage in sex, it becomes an
issue of whether that individual is may not be interested in sex (low
motivation) or simply unable to engage insex (physical disorder)
How can we study sexual motivation?
* some scientists have suggested that the latency to mount
may provide an adequate measurement of sexual motivation (more
motivation > faster mounting); however, others have argued that
additional factors could influence the rate of mounting that would
make this measure invalid: What kinds of factors could influence the
rate of mounting? physical attributes of the male (if a male
had an injured hindlimb, he would have a slow latency to mount but
that really would not reflect sexual motivation, rather it would
indicate a problem in his ability to catch the female); proceptive
behavior shown by the female
* other tests have been designed to get at the sexual motivation
of the male without possible confounding effects of motoric responses
or that of the female
* for example, a male is placed on one side of an obstacle,
electrified grid, and a female is placed on the other; after each
mount or intromission, the male is returned to the other side of the
obstacles; the amount of electrical current the male withstands to
reach the female is taken as a measure of sexual
motivation
* female is placed in a box at the end of a runway; how quickly the
male runs down the runway to reach the female can be used as an
indication of sexual motivation (assumption would be that different
groups of males can show a similar rate of locomotion)
* a male may be required to press a bar or lever a certain number of
times in order to gain access to a receptive female
Neuroendocrine Function in the Male
* In the male, neurons in the hypothalamus secrete GnRH into the
median eminence, which stimulate the release of LH and FSH into
general circulation.
* The release of GnRH and other steroids occurs in a pulsatile
fashion; this is true in the female as well as in the male.
* LH will act at receptors in the Leydig cells of the testes to
stimulate testosterone formation and secretion.
* Testosterone will act then upon androgen receptors (testosterone or
dihydrotestosterone) and/or estrogen receptors (via aromatization to
estrogen) in the adult male brain to stimulate components of male sex
behavior.
* Testosterone is also important for the production of sperm; T plus
FSH act upon receptors on Sertoli cells to stimulate spermatogenesis
(formation of mature sperm from dividing germ cells in the
seminiferous tubules).
There is considerable variation among vertebrate species in the
seasonal pattern of testosterone secretion and in the sensitivity of
the brain to the actions of testosterone.
* in seasonal breeders (hamsters, ferrets & sheep), mating occurs
during a specific time of the year; during breeding season, levels of
GnRH, LH and testosterone are high as well as the display of male sex
behavior; when the animal passes out of the breeding season, there is
a regression of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis; so levels of
GnRH, LH and testosterone decrease dramatically, testicular
regression,and cessation of production of mature sperm (these changes
reverse when breeding season again approaches)
* in season breeders, changes in photoperiod (relative duration of
day and night) play a role in timing changes in
hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis; photoperioid interacts with
length of gestation to influence the timing of breeding
* Ex. in male sheep, breeding occurs in the fall in response
to shortening day length; in male ferrets, breeding occurs in
the spring, when the days are growing longer; so breeding can
occur in response to increasing or decreasing day length, the key
difference is the length of gestation and its importance to
survival of the offspring. In sheep, gestation lasts 5 months, so
mating and fertilization occurs in the fall, so that the offspring
(lambs) are born in the spring, when conditions are optimal for
survival of the newborn. In ferrets, gestation lasts only 41 days and
so mating can occur in the spring because the offspring will be born
in the spring and will have the best chance for survival.
* there are species that are not seasonal breeders; rats and
primates
In addition to controlling testosterone secretion, there is some
suggestion that photoperiod can affect the responsiveness of the
nervous system to circulating hormones.
* For example, castrated hamsters housed given them exogenous
testosterone while housing them under a short-day photoperiod or a
long-day photoperiod, you will find that the short-day photoperiod
has an inhibitory effect on male sex behavior, even though levels of
testosterone are the same between the two groups (normally, hamsters
are not sexually active under conditions of a short-photoperiod).
What is the role of testosterone, and its metabolites
estrogen and 5a-reductase, in stimulating male copulation?
We will focus our discussion initially on sex behavior in male
rats, and then discuss some differences between species.
In the male rat:
* developmentally: T is important for virilization of the Wolffian
ducts, T > DHT is important for masculine development of external
genitalia, and development of spinal nucleus of bulbocavernosus, T
> E is important for masculinizing the brain (development of the
SDN-POA)
* in the adult, it has been suggested that T > DHT is important
facilitating penile erections and intromissive capacity (E or
androgens from other sources may play a role under certain
circumstances); T > E is important for facilitating mating
behavior (display of mounts and intromissions); how can we tell?
Picture (flips/flops); study penile erections without a female;
latency to penile erection; study mating by measuring latency to
first intromission with a female Figure 4.1.
* in rats, if you give castrated males estrogen, the male will
show mounting and intromission, although full erectile function is
believed to require androgens; in other species, androgens must be
present for erections to occur; if you give castrated male's DHT, the
male will not show mounting or intromission, although the male is
capable of producing penile erections
* Does estrogen duplicate all of the behavioral effects of
testosterone? No, suggested that, in at least some species like
ferrets, T may be important in stimulating masculine sexual
motivation including partner preference. Figure 4.3.
* in male rats and hamsters, E is thought to stimulate mating and DHT
(and E) stimulates erectile function
* in other species, lizard, mouse and guinea pig, DHT can stimulate
mating
* in primates, neither E, nor DHT, nor their combination can
duplicate the activational effects of T on masculine sexual
performance
How do androgens and estrogens interact within the brain to
stimulate male sex behavior?
First, the MPOA is critical for the display of mounts,
intromissions and ejaculations, and for the ability of gonadal
steroids to stimulate the response.
* if you lesion MPOA, male loses ability to show these behaviors
* if you electrically stimulate MPOA, the occurrence of these
behaviors are increased (facilitatory effect)
* if you castrate male rats, and then implant T or E into MPOA, male
rats will show mounts and intromissions; ERs and ARs are present
within MPOA; if you implant DHT into MPOA, no or little sex behavior
will be shown
* [if you implant aromatiase inhibitor into MPOA of intact males,
you will inhibit mounts and intromissions]
MPOA projects to neurons within midbrain and brainstem (not
midbrain central gray), and from there neurons project to spinal
cord; these are excitatory inputs and they lead to 2 major effects:
1) autonomic control of erections and ejaculations, 2) motor control
of mounting and pelvic thrusting; MPOA is important in controlling
copulatory reflexes.
Brain regions in the forebrain can facilitate or inhibit the
display of male sex behavior. Let's consider two brain regions that
can facilitate the display of male copulation.
The amygdala plays an important role in associative
processes that feed into emotional and behavioral circuits. When we
consider male sex behavior we can define it into two main types of
responses: appetitive responses and consummatory responses. This
distinction is true of other behaviors.
Consummatory Responses:
* refers to the more stereotypedresponses such as the display of
mounts and intromissions; MPOA is critical for the display of these
copulatory reflexes
* corticomedial amygdala (CMA) processes olfactory inputs > MPOA
> midbrain/brainstem >SC (show schematic)
* in some species, like the hamster, chemosensory inputs are critical
to the display of male sex behavior; if you block the detection of
pheromones, you block male sex behavior; other species are less
dependent upon chemosensory inputs (inputs may facilitate behavior
but they are not required for behavior to occur)
Appetitive Responses:
* refers to processes that bring a male into direct contact with the
female, and can include locomotor activity, chemoinvestigation or
other types of learned responses (such as bar pressing to gain access
to a female)
* in the amygdala, the basolateral nucleus (BLa) has been implicated
in associative learning that feeds into motivational circuits
* BLa > NAcc (ventral striatum; linked to motivational
responses) ventral pallidum brain regions involved in
motor responses
* chapter describes the role of BLa in associating relationship
between bar pressing to gain access to an estrous female; if you
lesion BLa, the male will stop bar pressing to gain access to the
estrous female, but if you place a female into his cage, he can
readily mate with her;what is lost is the learned association between
bar pressing and access to an estrous female
* similarly, lesions of NAcc have only minor effects on the display
of copulation; one can dissociate motivational circuits from those
involved in specific motoric responses such as mounting; but
increased sexual motivation can enhance the rate of male
copulation
Of interest, dopamine plays an important role in these
processes:
* dopamine cell groups implicated in male sex behavior: 1) neurons
within ventral tegmental area (VTA) > nucleus accumbens (NAcc)
> ventral pallidum > motor control areas of brain (imp. for
motivation and reward; not specific to sex behavior); 2)
incertohypothalamic dopamine neurons > MPOA (imp. for mounts,
intromissions, and ejaculations; 3) substantia nigra > dorsal
striatum (general locomotion)
* we can measure level of dopamine and/or its metabolites within
extracellular space; it is believed that increased levels of
extracellular dopamine indicates increased release of dopamine at
synapses
* we can follow the release of dopamine in specific brain region
during sex behavior
* in dorsal striatum, dopamine release increases significantly when
male engages in sex behavior (link to locomotion associated with
mating)
* in nucleus accumbens, dopamine increases first when a male is
placed into chamber in which it has mated previously (anticipatory
response), dopamine increases further when the male can see the
female but not contact her, and then even more when he is able to
mate with the female (link to responses not simply associated with
mounts and intromissions; role in sexual motivation)