Effects of prenatal stress on sexual partner preference in mice

Three-month old, male Swiss Webster mice were born to either control dams or dams who had been prenatally stressed with light, heat, noise and handling during the last week of gestation. As adults, male offspring were tested on sexual partner preference and sexual behavior (mounting, intromissions a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Physiology & behavior 2006-09, Vol.89 (2), p.133-138
Main Authors: Meek, Leslie R., Schulz, Kalynn M., Keith, Courtney A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Behavioral psychophysiology
Biological and medical sciences
Choice Behavior - physiology
Critical Period (Psychology)
Female
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Homosexuality
Male
Mice
Miscellaneous
Posture
Pregnancy
Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects
Prenatal stress
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Sexual Behavior, Animal - physiology
Sexual orientation
Sexual partner preference
Social Behavior
Stress, Physiological - physiopathology
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Summary:Three-month old, male Swiss Webster mice were born to either control dams or dams who had been prenatally stressed with light, heat, noise and handling during the last week of gestation. As adults, male offspring were tested on sexual partner preference and sexual behavior (mounting, intromissions and lordosis) with a sexually experienced male stimulus animal and a stimulus estrous female. In comparison to males born to control dams, prenatally stressed males showed a sexual partner preference for the sexually active male as demonstrated by a negative partner preference score, more and longer visits to the male's compartment, fewer and shorter visits to the female's compartment and longer latencies to and lower frequencies of mounts and intromissions of females. In addition, stressed males showed a greater frequency of lordosis and a higher lordosis quotient than did control males. This study is the first to investigate the effects of prenatal stress alone, without hormonal manipulation, on sexual partner preference using both a partner preference paradigm and measures of sexual behavior such as mounting, intromissions and lordosis. These findings support the suggestion that prenatal stress alone is enough to significantly affect sexual partner preference in male mice.
ISSN:0031-9384
1873-507X
DOI:10.1016/j.physbeh.2006.05.006