Abstract
The effects of repeated sexual behavior tests in male rats were assessed. Training (seven times, 5 days apart) revealed significant decreases in latencies to the first mount, first intromission, ejaculation, postejaculatory mount, and postejaculatory intromission, the total number of mounts, and mount frequency. The number of intromissions before ejaculation did not show differences among the seven observations. In addition, the percentage of animals that ejaculated did not change. Indices of copulatory efficiency and sexual activity were influenced by training. Both increased, but different numbers of sessions were required. Variability decreased among sessions, which increased homogeneity. Our results indicate that training (i.e., the number of test sessions) affects male sexual behavior and, therefore, should be taken into consideration when analyzing facilitatory or inhibitory influences.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Agmo, A., & Picker, Z. (1990). Catecholamines and the initiation of sexual behavior in male rats without sexual experience. Pharmacology, Biochemistry & Behavior, 35, 327–334.
Agmo, A., Paredes, R., & Fernández, H. (1987). Differential effects of GABA transaminase inhibitors on sexual behavior, locomotor activity, and motor execution in the male rat. Pharmacology, Biochemistry & Behavior, 28, 47–52.
Beach, F. A. (1942). Analysis of factors involved in the arousal, maintenance and manifestation of sexual excitement in male animals. Psychosomatic Medicine, 4, 173–198.
Bitran, D., & Hull, E. M. (1988). Pharmacological analysis of male rat sexual behavior. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 20, 323–331.
Claro, F., Segovia, S., Guilamón, A., & Del Abril, A. (1995). Lesions in the medial posterior region of the BST impair sexual behavior in sexually experienced and inexperienced male rats. Brain Research Bulletin, 36, 1–10.
Cruz-Casallas, P. E., Nasello, A. G., Hucke, E. E. T. S., & Felicio, L. F. (1999). Central prolactin dual modulation of male sexual behavior in rats: Relationship with in vivo striatal dopaminergic activity. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 24, 681–693.
Cutmore, T. R., & Zamble, E. A. (1988). Pavlovian procedure for improving sexual performance of noncopulating male rats. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 17, 371–380.
Doherty, P. C., Bartke, A., & Smith, M. S. (1985). Hyperprolactinemia and male sexual behavior: Effects of steroid replacement with estrogen plus dihydrotestosterone. Physiology & Behavior, 35, 99–104.
Domjan, M., Akins, C., & Vandergriff, D. H. (1992). Increased responding to female stimuli as a result of sexual experience: Tests of mechanisms of learning. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 45B, 139–157.
Drago, F., Pellegrini-Quarantotti, B., Scapagnini, U., & Gessa, G. L. (1981). Short-term endogenous hyperprolactinemia and sexual behavior of male rats. Physiology & Behavior, 26, 277–279.
Felicio, L. F., & Nasello, A. G. (1989). Effects of acute bromopride treatment on rat prolactin levels and sexual behavior. Brazilian Journal of Medical & Biological Research, 22, 1011–1014.
Felicio, L. F., Palermo-Neto, J., & Nasello, A. G. (1989). Perinatal bromopride treatment: Effects on sexual behavior of male and female rats. Behavioral & Neural Biology, 52, 145–151.
Holloway, K. S., & Domjan, M. (1993a). Sexual approach conditioning: Tests of unconditioning stimulus devaluation using hormone manipulations. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes, 19, 47–55.
Holloway, K. S., & Domjan, M. (1993b). Sexual approach conditioning: Unconditioned stimulus factors. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes, 19, 38–46.
Larsson, K. (1956). Conditioning and sexual behavior in the male albino rat. Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell.
Liu, Y.-C., Salamone, J. D., & Sachs, B. D. (1997). Lesions in medial preoptic area and bed nucleus of stria terminalis: Differential effects on copulatory behavior and noncontact erection in male rats. Journal of Neuroscience, 1, 5245–5253.
Meisel, R. L., & Sachs, B. D. (1994). The physiology of male sexual behavior. In E. Knobil & J. D. Neill (Eds.), The physiology of reproduction (2nd ed., Vol. 2; pp. 3–105). New York: Raven.
Nasello, A. G., Vanzeler, M. L. A., Madureira, E. H., & Felicio, L. F. (1997). Effects of acute and long-term domperidone treatment on prolactin and gonadal hormone levels and sexual behavior of male and female rats. Pharmacology, Biochemistry & Behavior, 58, 1089–1094.
Nunez, A. A., & Tan, D. T. (1984). Courtship ultrasonic vocalizations in male Swiss-Webster mice: Effects of hormones and sexual experience. Physiology & Behavior, 32, 717–721.
Nyby, J., Whitney, G., Schmitz, S., & Dizinno, G. (1978). Post-pubertal experience establishes signal value of mammalian sex odor. Behavioral Biology, 22, 545–552.
Saldivar-Gonzalez, A., Fernandez-Guasti, A., & Etgen, A. M. (1993). Male rat sexual behavior induces changes in [3H] flunitrazepam binding. Brain Research, 611, 326–329.
Silva, M. R. P., Oliveira, C. A., Felicio L. F., Nasello, A. G., & Bernardi, M. M. (1998). Perinatal treatment with picrotoxin induces sexual behavioral and neuroendocrine changes in male rats. Pharmacology, Biochemistry & Behavior, 60, 203–208.
Whalen, R. E., Gorzalka, B. B., & DeBold, J. F. (1975). Methodologic considerations in the study of animal sexual behavior. In M. Sandier & G. L. Gessa (Eds.), Sexual behavior: Pharmacology & biochemistry (pp. 33–440) New York: Raven.
Zamble, E., Hadag, G. M., Mitchell, J. B., & Cutmore, T. R. (1985). Pavlovian conditioning of sexual arousal: First- and second-order effects. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes, 11, 598–610.
Zamble, E., Mitchell, J. B., & Findlay, H. (1986). Pavlovian conditioning of sexual arousal: Parametric and background manipulations. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Behavior Processes, 12, 403–411.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
We thank Fundação de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP; Grant 96/4193-0) and Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq; Grants 520234/96 and 520656/96) for financial support. P.E.C.-C. was supported by a fellowship from CAPES.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Cruz-Casallas, P.E., Felicio, L.F. & Nasello, A.G. A quantitative analysis of the role of experience in the regulation of sexual behavior in male rats. Psychobiology 28, 406–410 (2000). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03331998
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03331998