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Related Experiment Videos

Aromatization mediates aggressive behavior in quail.

B A Schlinger1, G V Callard

  • 1Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles 90024.

General and Comparative Endocrinology
|July 1, 1990
PubMed
Summary

Testosterone (T) activates male aggression in Japanese quail, but only after it is converted to estradiol (E2). This conversion is essential for masculine behaviors, highlighting the role of estrogen in aggression.

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroendocrinology
  • Behavioral Endocrinology
  • Animal Behavior

Background:

  • Testosterone (T) influences aggressive and reproductive behaviors in many vertebrates.
  • Full expression of T action in the brain requires aromatization to estradiol (E2) and interaction with estrogen receptors.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the role of T aromatization to E2 in the activation of male aggression in Japanese quail.
  • To characterize the neuroendocrine mechanisms underlying T-induced masculine behaviors.

Main Methods:

  • Developed a novel behavioral test quantifying male quail response to conspecific visual stimuli, termed "aggression".
  • Administered T, estradiol benzoate (EB), 5 alpha-dihydrotestosterone (DHT), and various inhibitors (aromatase inhibitor OHA, estrogen receptor blocker CI-628, androgen receptor blocker flutamide) to reproductively inactive and active quail.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Measured aggression levels and aromatase activity in the hypothalamus-preoptic area (HPOA).

    • Main Results:

    • T and EB activated aggression in reproductively inactive males; DHT did not.
    • T-induced aggression was blocked by the aromatase inhibitor OHA, with partial reversal by EB.
    • Estrogen receptor blockade (CI-628) reduced aggressiveness in active males, while androgen receptor blockade (flutamide) had no effect.
    • T or E2 treatment increased HPOA aromatase activity.

    Conclusions:

    • Conversion of T to E2 is essential for activating male aggressiveness in Japanese quail.
    • Locally formed estrogen mediates aggression, partly by increasing aromatase activity.
    • The behavioral response involves both short-latency, receptor-independent and long-latency, receptor-dependent events.