Maternal Behavior in Female C57BL/6J and DBA/2J Inbred Mice

Brown, Richard E.; Mathieson, William; Stapleton, Jennifer; Neumann, Paul E.

doi:10.1016/s0031-9384(99)00109-2

Cited by 86 publications

(90 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…The MPOpc, originally described by Robinson et al (1985), thus appears to be identical to the neurophysincontaining "mouse accessory nucleus" of Castel and Morris (1988). The presence of oxytocin, vasopressin, galanin, and nitric oxide synthase (demonstrated histochemically by NADPHd staining) in the MPOpc suggests that absence of this accessory magnocellular neurosecretory cell group in B6 mice may contribute to reported strain differences in male sexual performance (McGill and Tucker, 1964) and maternal behavior (Brown et al, 1999). Each of these molecules, which have been associated with hypothalamic magnocellular neurosecretory cells, has also been associated with sexual and maternal behaviors in rats.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 69%

“…The absence of this subnucleus in C57BL/6J (B6) inbred mice (Robinson et al, 1985) presents an opportunity to study the MPOpc and its potential influences on reproductive and other behaviors. Comparisons of B6 and DBA/2J (D2) mice have revealed lower sex drive in B6 males (McGill and Tucker, 1964), higher levels of infanticide in B6 males and females (Svare and Broida, 1982;Mann et al, 1983), relatively high B6 infant mortality in first litters (Nagasawa et al, 1973;Brown et al, 1999), and lower levels of "passive" maternal behaviors (resting with, crouching over, and nursing pups) in B6 mothers (Brown et al, 1999).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Strain and sex differences in the morphology of the medial preoptic nucleus of mice

et al. 2000

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The medial preoptic nucleus (MPO), which is involved in sexual and maternal behaviors, contains neuronal clusters that have been described as being sexually dimorphic in size and neuropeptide content in a variety of species. A subnucleus in DBA/2J (D2) inbred mice, called the pars compacta of the MPO (MPOpc), is absent in C57BL/6J (B6) inbred mice (Robinson et al. [1985] J. Neurogenet. 2:381-388). We report here on experiments that further characterize strain and sex differences in medial preoptic morphology in D2 and B6 inbred mice. A prominent MPOpc, located within the caudal part of the MPO and dorsal to the suprachiasmatic nucleus, was present in both male and female D2 animals but was absent from B6 animals. MPOpc neurons were darkly stained for Nissl substance and larger than neurons in the surrounding MPO. In D2 brains, galanin-immunoreactive (-ir), oxytocin-ir, vasopressin-ir, and NADPH diaphorase-positive neurons were concentrated within the MPOpc. Fewer similar neurons in the comparable region of the MPO of B6 mice suggests that the absence of the MPOpc is due to absence of these neurons rather than a less compact organization. In D2 animals, the density of galanin-ir neurons in the MPOpc was sexually dimorphic, with higher numbers of galanin-ir neurons in females. Strain differences in galanin-ir, oxytocin-ir, vasopressin-ir, and NADPH diaphorase staining appeared to be limited to the MPOpc. Cholecystokinin-immunoreactive neurons, which have been reported to be numerous in the sexually dimorphic central subdivision of the MPO of rats, were sparse in the MPO of D2 and B6 mice. Confirmation of the MPOpc as an accessory magnocellular neurosecretory nucleus was obtained by finding labeling of MPOpc neurons after injection of DiI into the posterior pituitary.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 69%

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Strain and sex differences in the morphology of the medial preoptic nucleus of mice

et al. 2000

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“…Priestnall (1973) found that female mice rearing large litters spent less time caring for their young and Brown et al (1999) observed that survival rate and weight gain improved as mothers became more experienced.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Early experiences modulate stress coping in a population of German shepherd dogs

Foyer

Wilsson

Wright

et al. 2013

Applied Animal Behaviour Science

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Early experiences may alter later behavioural expressions in animals and these differences can be consistent through adulthood. In dogs, this may have a profound impact on welfare and working ability and, it is therefore interesting to evaluate how experiences during the first weeks of life contribute to shaping the long-term behaviour. We analysed data from 503 dogs from 105 litters, bred at the Swedish Armed Forces Dog Kennel. For each dog, the data comprised information on dam and sire, sex, litter size, sex ratio of litter, date of birth, and weight at birth, and at 10 days of age. Between the ages of 377 and 593 days, the dogs were tested in a temperament test, assessing their suitability as working dogs. The behaviour test comprised 12 different sub-tests, and was scored on a behavioural rating scale. A principal components analysis showed that the test performance could largely be attributed to four principal components (explaining 55.7% of variation), labelled Confidence, Physical Engagement, Social Engagement and Aggression. We analysed the effects of the different early life variables and sex on the principal component scores (PC scores) using linear modelling. PC scores on Confidence were affected by parity, sex and litter size, and Physical Engagement was affected by parity, growth rate, litter size and season of birth. Social Engagement was affected by growth rate and sex, and Aggression was affected by sex. Some of these effects disappeared when they were combined into a single linear model, but most of them remained significant also when controlling for collinearity. The results suggest that the early environment of dogs have long-lasting effects on their behaviour and coping styles in a stressful test situation and this knowledge can be used in the work with breeding of future military or police working dogs.

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“…A number of studies have demonstrated that there are strain-dependent variations in maternal behavior in inbred mice (e.g., Anisman, Zaharia, Meaney, & Merali, 1998;Bond, Neumann, Mathieson, & Brown, 2002;Brown, Mathieson, Stapleton, & Neumann, 1999;Carlier, Roubertoux, & Cohen-Salmon, 1982;Cohen-Salmon et al, 1985;Priebe et al, 2005;Shoji & Kato, 2006;Ward, 1980). Although they indicate genetic influences on maternal behavior, the nongenetic effects of maternal care on the development of maternal behavior found in rats suggest that the maternal behavior of inbred mice may be determined not only by the genes of each strain but also by strain-dependent variations in maternal behavior during the early rearing period.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maternal care affects the development of maternal behavior in inbred mice

Shoji

Kato

2009

Developmental Psychobiology

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The present study investigated the effects of variations in maternal behavior on the development of maternal behavior of female offspring in BALB/c and CBA/Ca inbred mice. In Experiment 1, we conducted fostering within or between the two strains and observed the maternal behaviors of mothers and female offspring for 2 weeks postpartum. Although fostering changed the maternal behavior of mothers in both strains, CBA mothers generally showed greater frequency of nursing posture and pup licking than BALB mothers. BALB female offspring reared by CBA mothers showed more body licking than those reared by BALB mothers, whereas fostering did not affect the maternal behavior of CBA female offspring. In Experiment 2, we examined the maternal behavior of females of F1 hybrids derived from reciprocal crosses between the two strains to confirm the maternal effect demonstrated in Experiment 1. Female F1 hybrids from CBA mothers showed more arched-back nursing, body licking, and nest building than those from BALB mothers. These results suggested that maternal care affect the development of maternal behavior in inbred mice, though the contributions of genetic and prenatal factors cannot be ignored.

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Maternal Behavior in Female C57BL/6J and DBA/2J Inbred Mice

Cited by 86 publications

References 31 publications

Strain and sex differences in the morphology of the medial preoptic nucleus of mice

Strain and sex differences in the morphology of the medial preoptic nucleus of mice

Early experiences modulate stress coping in a population of German shepherd dogs

Maternal care affects the development of maternal behavior in inbred mice

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