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Stimulation of Estrus in Female Mice by Male Urinary Proteins

Journal of Chemical Ecology volume 26, pages 2355–2366 (2000)Cite this article

Abstract

Stimulation of estrus in adult female mice was obtained with major urinary proteins (MUPs) with the natural volatile ligands bound. The MUP threshold concentration for this effect was about 1.8 mg/ml. MUPs without the ligands bound, as purified by organic extraction of hydrophobic compounds, stimulated estrus in mice only when dissolved in carrier urine of juvenile or castrated adult male mouse or ovariectomized female mouse. They did not stimulate estrus when dissolved in water. Mice that had the vomeronasal organ removed were insensitive to MUPs. It is concluded that MUPs are an integral part of the mouse male pheromones that stimulate hormonal activity in females and that the vomeronasal system is involved in the estrus-stimulating effect of the major urinary proteins.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University, Ingardena 6, 30-060, Krakow, Poland

    Anna Marchlewska-Koj

  2. Dipartimento di Anatomia e Fisiologia Umana, Università di Padova, 35100, Padova, Italy

    Andrea Cavaggioni & Carla Mucignat-Caretta

  3. Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University, Ingardena 6, 30-060, Krakow, Poland

    Paweł Olejniczak

Authors
  1. Anna Marchlewska-Koj
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  2. Andrea Cavaggioni
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  3. Carla Mucignat-Caretta
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  4. Paweł Olejniczak
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Marchlewska-Koj, A., Cavaggioni, A., Mucignat-Caretta, C. et al. Stimulation of Estrus in Female Mice by Male Urinary Proteins. J Chem Ecol 26, 2355–2366 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1005578911652

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