Sexual activity modulates neuroinflammatory responses in male rats

Immune activity influences reproduction, however, the extent to which mating experience may inversely alter immune pathways is poorly understood. A few studies in humans suggest that mating triggers a circulating immune and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis response. In male rats, mating experience enhances neuroplasticity and improves cognitive function and affective-like behavior, independent of the physical activity component. Yet, the extent to which mating experience may influence immune responses in the brain remain unexplored. Here, we hypothesized that recent mating experience in male rats increases neuroinflammatory signaling (via lipopolysaccharide [LPS] stimulation, i.p.) and associated sickness behaviors (i.e., food intake, weight loss) relative to sexually-naïve controls. Virgin male rats were exposed to a sexually non-receptive (control) or sexually-receptive female for 30 min for six consecutive days. Immediately following the last mating experience, rats were administered a saline or LPS injection and euthanized four hours later. Mating increased Tnfα responses to LPS in the brain, which positively correlated with LPS-induced weight loss. Mating also increased peripheral corticosterone among saline-treated rats, but this corticosterone response was attenuated in the most proficient copulators (e.g., shortest latencies). Thus, recent mating experience may be a unique modulator of select stimulated inflammatory signals that are relevant to adaptive neuroimmune responses and behavior.