Abstract
Female mice of two inbred strains (A/J and C57BL/6J) raised litters with a fixed ratio of offspring to single or multiple mothers under same- and mixed-strain conditions. Communal nursing enhanced growth in offspring of both strains; for the A/J strain, higher levels of activity were obtained particularly for those offspring raised with mixed-strain mothers and littermates.
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This research was supported in part by USPHS Research Grant No. HD-04158 from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. The technical assistance of J. Jeffery Laverty and William Gensel is gratefully acknowledged.
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Werboff, J., Steg, M. & Barnes, L. Communal nursing in mice: Strain-specific effects of multiple mothers on growth and behavior. Psychon Sci 19, 269–271 (1970). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03328811
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03328811