Off-campus UNL users: To download campus access dissertations, please use the following link to log into our proxy server with your NU ID and password. When you are done browsing please remember to return to this page and log out.
Non-UNL users: Please talk to your librarian about requesting this dissertation through interlibrary loan.
The nucleus paragigantocellularis and serotonergic influences on male rat copulatory behavior
Abstract
The present experiments were designed to complement previous studies suggesting that aspects of male rat copulatory behavior are modulated by a descending serotonergic (5-HT) inhibitory pathway originating in the nucleus paragigantocellularis (PGi) and terminating in the lumbosacral spinal cord. In Experiment 1, intact and PGi-lesioned male rats were evaluated for copulatory behavior following treatment with saline, the 5-HT1$\rm\sb{A}$ receptor agonist 8-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino) tetralin (8-OH-DPAT), or the 5-HT1$\rm\sb{B}$ receptor agonist 1-(m-chlorophenyl) piperazine (MCPP). Animals with PGi lesions receiving saline or 8-OH-DPAT showed a marked facilitation of copulatory behavior whereas animals with PGi lesions that received MCPP did not show such facilitation. In intact animals, MCPP inhibited and 8-OH-DPAT facilitated copulatory behavior. In Experiment 2, PGi and/or Dorsal Raphe Nuclei (DRN) lesions facilitated specific aspects of male rat copulatory behavior. In intact animals, the 5-HT uptake blocker fluoxetine (FLX) inhibited male rat copulatory behavior. The inhibition became more pronounced as the rat approached sexual exhaustion. This inhibition persisted in animals with DRN lesions but was greatly attenuated in animals with PGi lesions. These experiments provide further support for the hypothesis that the PGi is a source of inhibitory influences on male rat sexual behavior and that such influences may be mediated by 5-HT activity.
Subject Area
Psychology|Experiments|Psychobiology
Recommended Citation
Yells, David Phillip, "The nucleus paragigantocellularis and serotonergic influences on male rat copulatory behavior" (1994). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI9510987.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI9510987