Hormones and Behavior最新文献

{"title":"Are women's sexual preferences for men's facial hair associated with their testosterone during the menstrual cycle?","authors":"Barnaby J.W. Dixson ,&nbsp;Anthony J. Lee ,&nbsp;Grazyna Jasienska ,&nbsp;Urszula M. Marcinkowska","doi":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105791","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105791","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The ovulatory shift hypothesis proposes that women's mate preferences for androgen-dependent secondary sexual traits in men are most pronounced during the ovulatory phase of the menstrual cycle. Using an appropriately powered within-subjects design, we provide the first test of whether women's sexual preferences for male facial hair, which is reliably associated with male sexual maturity and masculinity, peak during the ovulatory phase among women with higher salivary testosterone. Sixty-five heterosexual women completed the study, which included a two-alternative forced choice preference test wherein participants selected the face they found most sexually attractive from pairs of composite images of the same men when fully bearded and when clean-shaven. The task was completed among the same participants during the follicular, ovulatory (validated by the surge in luteinizing hormone) and luteal phases. Participants also provided saliva samples for subsequent assaying of testosterone. We ran two models, both of which showed strong preferences among women for bearded over clean-shaven composite faces. In our first model, women's preferences for bearded faces were negatively associated with their salivary testosterone levels. In our second model, in which we included women's menstrual cycle phase, this negative association appeared to be driven by preferences among women in the ovulatory and follicular phases. However, the main effect of cycle phase and the interaction between testosterone and cycle phase were not statistically significant. Although further replication is required to confirm our findings, for the present we conclude that women's preferences for men's beardedness may not be related to changes in their salivary testosterone over the menstrual cycle in ways that support the ovulatory shift hypothesis.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":13001,"journal":{"name":"Hormones and Behavior","volume":"174 ","pages":"Article 105791"},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2025-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144738942","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Do combined oral contraceptives have long-term effects? Little evidence of an enduring effect on cognitive function in former users","authors":"Elizabeth Hampson","doi":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105800","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105800","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The use of combined oral contraceptives (COCs) is associated with subtle differences in brain activity and in certain cognitive, perceptual, or affective processes among current COC users compared with non-users. Whether any differences persist after the COCs are discontinued is essentially unknown. In a retrospective analysis of a cognitive dataset from healthy adults (<em>N</em> = 221, <em>M</em>_age = 23.78 yrs), we asked whether any residual effects of COC use could be identified in former users (who had discontinued their COCs ∼30 mo prior) on standardized tests of verbal fluency and visuospatial function. A detailed reproductive history was available, including specifics of any past COC use. Cognition was evaluated during the early follicular phase of the menstrual cycle when the ovaries are quiescent and hormone production is lowest. Based on their reproductive history, participants were classified as former users of COCs (<em>N</em> = 86, mean duration of COC use = 29.89 mo), never-users (<em>N</em> = 106, no past use of hormonal contraceptives), or current users (<em>N</em> = 29, currently using a COC, mean duration of COC use = 29.72 mo). All COCs contained either levonorgestrel or a progestin from the norethindrone family, and 30–35 μg/day of ethinyl estradiol. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) contrasting cognitive performance in the 3 groups showed that despite the use of androgenic progestins and an estradiol dose that was relatively high, there was no evidence of a difference between former-users and never-users on any of the cognitive tests. Current users scored lower than former or never users on a conventional visuospatial task (Space Relations). Partial correlations controlling for age, estimated IQ, and pregnancy history revealed that duration of past COC use in former users was significantly associated with verbal fluency on one of two phonemic fluency tasks administered. A longer duration of COC use was associated with poorer word generation ability. This dataset produced little evidence of any enduring effects of COC use, however a duration-dependent association between former COC use and verbal fluency reinforces a similar trend reported previously among current users.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":13001,"journal":{"name":"Hormones and Behavior","volume":"174 ","pages":"Article 105800"},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2025-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144738943","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Multiparity alters expression of corticotropin releasing factor receptor 1 and co-expression with oxytocin neurons in mice","authors":"Katherine E. Parra ,&nbsp;Jennifer J. Lafrican ,&nbsp;Krystyna A. Rybka ,&nbsp;Amaya E. Neuwirth ,&nbsp;Lauren S. Chait ,&nbsp;Ariana V. Della Posta ,&nbsp;Annette L. Greenwood ,&nbsp;Kristen L. Zuloaga ,&nbsp;Nicholas J. Justice ,&nbsp;Damian G. Zuloaga","doi":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105799","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105799","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Corticotropin releasing factor (CRF) signaling through its primary receptor (CRFR1) regulates various stress-related behaviors and neuroendocrine responses. CRFR1 is also a key regulator of stress-related behavior changes during the postpartum period in rodents. Previous studies indicate dynamic changes in CRFR1 in various brain regions during the first postpartum period including an emergence of CRFR1 expression in hypothalamic oxytocin neurons. We sought to determine how these changes in CRFR1 and CRFR1/oxytocin co-expression might be altered with repeated breeding cycles and whether these neural adaptations coincide with changes in maternal behaviors that are reported to occur in rodent dams with greater maternal experience. CRFR1-GFP reporter mice were bred to produce 1 (primiparous) or 3 (multiparous) litters and were assessed for pup retrieval in unstressed and stressed (male intruder) conditions. Brains of nulliparous, primiparous, and multiparous mice were collected to assess CRFR1-GFP and co-expression of CRFR1 with oxytocin. No statistically significant changes in pup retrieval were found between primiparous and multiparous mice although both groups showed a greater latency to hover over pups following male intruder exposure. However, multiparity increased oxytocin/CRFR1 co-expression relative to primiparous and nulliparous mice in the paraventricular hypothalamus (PVN) and supraoptic nucleus (SON). Multiparous mice also showed elevated CRFR1-GFP in the PVN and SON relative to primiparous mice. In the medial preoptic area and anteroventral periventricular nucleus, primiparous, but not multiparous mice differed in CRFR1-GFP levels relative to nulliparous mice. Together, these findings indicate dynamic changes in CRFR1 with multiparity that may contribute to stress-related behavior changes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":13001,"journal":{"name":"Hormones and Behavior","volume":"174 ","pages":"Article 105799"},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2025-07-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144721020","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Birth controlling your fears: The long-term effects of adolescent exposure to hormonal contraceptives on fear extinction in long-evans female rats","authors":"Madison Brooke ,&nbsp;Bronwyn M. Graham","doi":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105789","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105789","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The mechanisms involved in inhibiting fear to a threatening cue can be studied in the laboratory via fear extinction, which is a process thought to underpin the development and treatment of anxiety disorders. In adult female rats, fluctuating sex hormones across the estrous cycle modulate fear extinction, and suppressing sex hormones via hormonal contraceptives (HCs) impairs fear extinction. Despite high usage of HCs during adolescence, no research has examined HC effects on extinction during this developmental phase. In the current study, adolescent female rats (postnatal day 35) were administered a nine day treatment of one of two HC formulations: a high dose of levonorgestrel (LEV), or a lower dose of LEV combined with ethinyl estradiol (EE). Rats received fear conditioning, extinction training, and extinction retention, either across the last few days of HC exposure, or two weeks post HC-cessation as adults (postnatal day 58). In both adolescents and adults, LEV impaired extinction retention, but EE + LEV did not. Altogether, these findings provide evidence that LEV impairs extinction retention during adolescence, and that this impairing effect lasts beyond the cessation of LEV when exposure begins during adolescence. Both HC formulations suppressed endogenous sex hormones during HC exposure, and neither produced long-term effects on endogenous sex hormones two weeks post cessation, suggesting that suppression of endogenous hormones were not the sole mechanism for the impairing effects of LEV on extinction retention. Such findings may have implications for the potential impact of HC use during adolescence on the development and treatment of anxiety disorders.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":13001,"journal":{"name":"Hormones and Behavior","volume":"174 ","pages":"Article 105789"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-07-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144714407","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A survey of hypothalamic phenotypes identifies molecular and behavioral consequences of MYT1L haploinsufficiency in male and female mice","authors":"Susan E. Maloney ,&nbsp;Katherine B. McCullough ,&nbsp;Sneha M. Chaturvedi ,&nbsp;Din Selmanovic ,&nbsp;Rebecca Chase ,&nbsp;Jiayang Chen ,&nbsp;Shanyun Wu ,&nbsp;Jorge L. Granadillo ,&nbsp;Kristen L. Kroll ,&nbsp;Joseph D. Dougherty","doi":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105796","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105796","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The transcription factor MYT1L supports proper neuronal differentiation and maturation during brain development. MYT1L haploinsufficiency results in a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by intellectual disability, developmental delay, autism, behavioral disruptions, aggression, obesity and epilepsy. While MYT1L is expressed throughout the brain, how it supports proper neuronal function in distinct regions has not been assessed. Some features of MYT1L Neurodevelopmental Syndrome suggest disruption of hypothalamic function, such as obesity and endocrine issues, and previous research showed changes in hypothalamic neuropeptide expression following knockdown in zebrafish. Here, we leveraged our heterozygous <em>Myt1l</em> mutant, previously shown to recapitulate aspects of the human syndrome such as hyperactivity, social challenges, and obesity, to examine the impact of MYT1L loss on hypothalamic function. Examining the molecular profile of the MYT1L haploinsufficient hypothalamus revealed a similar scale of disruption to previously studied brain regions, yet with region-specific roles for MYT1L, including regulation of neuropeptide systems. Alterations in oxytocin and arginine vasopressin cell numbers were also found. Behaviors studied included maternal care, social group hierarchies, and aggression, all of which were unchanged. Feeding and metabolic markers were also largely unchanged in MYT1L haploinsufficient mice, yet an interaction was observed between diet and MYT1L genotype on weight gain. Our findings here suggest that gross endocrine function was not altered by MYT1L haploinsufficiency, and that key sex-specific behaviors related to proper hypothalamic function remain intact. Further study is needed to understand the functional impact of the altered hypothalamic molecular profile and changes in neuropeptide cell numbers that result from MYT1L haploinsufficiency.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":13001,"journal":{"name":"Hormones and Behavior","volume":"174 ","pages":"Article 105796"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-07-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144714406","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Sex difference in the effects of ventral pallidum vasopressin 1a receptor partial knockdown on social behavior in mice","authors":"Caitlin N. Friesen ,&nbsp;Delenn Hartswick ,&nbsp;Alexandra Selke ,&nbsp;Geert J. de Vries ,&nbsp;Aras Petrulis","doi":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105792","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105792","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The neuropeptide vasopressin (AVP) regulates a diverse array of social behaviors, often having different functions in males and females. This sex difference is due, in part, to the AVP cells in the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST), which are more numerous in males than in females. These AVP cells send stronger projections to several brain regions that express the vasopressin 1a receptor (V1aR), including the ventral pallidum (vPal), an area broadly implicated in reward-seeking behavior. Previous experiments manipulating V1aR in vPal have found that activation of V1aR in this area mediates AVP effects on social behavior with differential effects on male and female rats across different social contexts. Consequently, to better understand the role of V1aR in vPal, we reduced V1aR expression in the vPal using a viral-mediated RNA-interference approach in male and female mice and tested their social investigatory, aggressive, copulatory and communicative responses to male and female conspecifics as well as their responses to anxiogenic or rewarding stimuli. Partial knockdown of V1aR in vPal of males reduced their social investigation of other males, but not of females, whereas the same manipulation had no effect on social investigation in females. In addition, partial knockdown in males reduced latencies to ejaculate during copulation. Reduction in V1aR within vPal did not influence communicative and aggressive behaviors, urine investigation, anxiety-like behavior, or sucrose preference. These results suggest that V1aR activity in the vPal specifically facilitates intermale investigation in adult mice but normally dampens their ejaculatory behavior.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":13001,"journal":{"name":"Hormones and Behavior","volume":"174 ","pages":"Article 105792"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-07-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144704340","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Chronic periadolescent leuprolide exposure affects the expression of multiple genes in the hypothalamus and pituitary gland with a different pattern of expression in female and male Long-Evans rats","authors":"Fay A. Guarraci ,&nbsp;Ian M. Klepcyk ,&nbsp;Lindsay M. Thompson ,&nbsp;Madeline Streifer ,&nbsp;Emily N. Hilz ,&nbsp;Grace Hudson ,&nbsp;Sarah H. Meerts ,&nbsp;Andrea C. Gore","doi":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105798","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105798","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Protracted exposure to drugs like Lupron Depot® suppresses pubertal development. How the brain responds and develops in the face of pharmacological suppression is not well understood. The present study tested the effects of daily leuprolide acetate (LEU) treatment (50 μg/kg, postnatal day (PD) 25–50) on gene expression (<em>Kiss1</em>, <em>Esr1</em>, <em>Esr2</em>, <em>Ar</em>, <em>Gnrh1</em>, <em>Gnrhr</em>) in the hypothalamus and pituitary of female and male Long-Evans rats using real-time PCR. Brains and trunk blood were harvested on PD 50. In the pituitary gland of both sexes, expression of <em>Esr2</em> and <em>Gnrhr</em> expression was higher in LEU-treated rats than in saline controls. <em>Esr1</em> expression in females was lower and <em>Ar</em> expression in males was higher in LEU-treated rats than saline controls. In the preoptic area of the hypothalamus in male rats, <em>Kiss1</em> expression was significantly lower in LEU than in saline controls. In the mediobasal hypothalamus, <em>Gnrh1</em> and <em>Kiss1</em> expression was higher in LEU-treated male rats than in saline controls; for females, only <em>Kiss1</em> was increased by LEU. Serum gonadal hormone levels were not significantly different in LEU-treated rats than saline controls at the end of treatment, although hormones trended lower in the LEU-treated rats. LEU affected expression of genes involved in reproduction, potentially explaining sex-specific effects of LEU on behavior reported earlier. The changes in hypothalamic and pituitary gene expression may represent compensation that permits early stages of pubertal development (e.g., VO and PPS), but not complete maturation (e.g., estrous cyclicity, sexual behavior) during LEU treatment.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":13001,"journal":{"name":"Hormones and Behavior","volume":"174 ","pages":"Article 105798"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-07-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144694719","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A dopamine agonist affects the social decision-making of calling male túngara frogs","authors":"Logan S. James ,&nbsp;Sarah C. Woolley ,&nbsp;Michael J. Ryan","doi":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105797","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105797","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>When vocalizing, many animals engage in decision-making processes that integrate information regarding the current social context. The midbrain dopaminergic system may provide a conserved mechanism underlying this process. For instance, in songbirds, modulation of dopamine release appears to contribute to social context-dependent changes to song. However, relatively little is known about the degree to which dopamine may contribute to similar vocal production and decision-making processes in other taxa, particularly the highly vocal anurans (frogs and toads). Here, we treated wild-caught male túngara frogs (<em>Engystomops pustulosus</em>) with a general dopamine agonist (apomorphine) and assessed its effects on motor performance and motivation as well as vocal decision-making in response to auditory stimuli that varied in social relevance. We found that the dopamine agonist generally increased vocal speed, with decreases in response latencies and call durations. Additionally, we found that dopamine increased call complexity, but only in response to the most socially relevant auditory stimulus (conspecific call). Finally, dopamine treatment and auditory stimulus interacted to affect decision-making regarding call timing and overlap with the stimulus. Compared to controls, frogs with apomorphine were more likely to overlap the playback stimulus in a manner predicted to be more attractive to females. These results highlight a role of dopaminergic circuits in modulating vocal outputs based on social inputs within a species of basal tetrapod.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":13001,"journal":{"name":"Hormones and Behavior","volume":"174 ","pages":"Article 105797"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144686222","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Hormonal and sex-specific functional genomic pathways of genetic risk candidates in autism spectrum disorder: evidence of sex-over-chance effects","authors":"Camilo Briones-Valdivieso ,&nbsp;Francisco Córdova ,&nbsp;Heidy Kaune ,&nbsp;Juan F. Montiel","doi":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105795","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105795","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental condition marked by substantial sex differences in prevalence, with males more frequently diagnosed than females. While genetic and environmental factors contribute to ASD, there is growing evidence that sex-specific endocrine pathways, particularly those involving sex hormones, may play a critical role in ASD etiology. This study aimed to investigate the functional network robustness and annotations of autism spectrum disorder genetic risk candidates (ASD-GRCs), with a focus on endocrine pathways and their impact on network connectivity. Using data from the Simon's Foundation Autism Research Initiative (SFARI) and functional network analysis via the STRING database, we assessed the connectivity of ASD-related genes by randomly subtracting sets of genes from the whole ASD gene network in subsets associated with androgen-testosterone, estrogen-progesterone, and other hormone pathways.</div><div>Our findings reveal a significant “sex-over-chance” association, with androgen- and estrogen-related gene subsets showing marked connectivity within the ASD gene network compared to non-sex hormone genes. These results suggest that sex hormones may uniquely influence ASD-related neural development, providing support for the “female protective effect” and the androgen-driven model of ASD. Additional analyses of other hormonal pathways, such as oxytocin and cortisol, showed a lower connectivity impact, reinforcing the distinctive role of sex hormones in ASD. This study highlights the potential of endocrine-focused genetic analysis in understanding ASD, emphasizing sex-specific biological mechanisms that may inform future diagnostic and therapeutic strategies.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":13001,"journal":{"name":"Hormones and Behavior","volume":"174 ","pages":"Article 105795"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144686229","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Mineralocorticoid receptor deletion alters spontaneous behavior in an automated home-cage monitoring apparatus","authors":"Dalisa R. Kendricks ,&nbsp;Sarah Jo Sleiman ,&nbsp;Sydney A. Fry ,&nbsp;Jariatu Stallone ,&nbsp;Briana J. Bernstein ,&nbsp;Korey D. Stevanovic ,&nbsp;Leslie R. Aksu ,&nbsp;Georgia M. Alexander ,&nbsp;Katharine E. McCann ,&nbsp;Serena M. Dudek ,&nbsp;Jesse D. Cushman","doi":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105794","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.yhbeh.2025.105794","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Mineralocorticoid receptors (MRs) are transcription factors expressed throughout the body and brain, with especially high expression in the hippocampal area CA2. MRs are essential for maintaining the physiological stress response and regulating the hypothalamic-pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis. Further, MRs function through the diurnal modulation of corticosterone activity. The aim of the current study was to determine the role MRs play in the modulation of spontaneous behavior throughout the day/night cycle. Three conditional MR knockout mouse lines were utilized: one with broad embryonic neuronal deletion (Nestin-Cre), one with embryonic forebrain deletion (EMX-Cre), and one with postnatal CA2-targeted deletion (Amigo2-Cre). Behavior in these strains was assessed using an automated home cage monitoring system to track spontaneous behavior over a 60-h period. Broad deletion of MRs disrupted behavior in a sex-dependent manner, with alteration in motor activity and shelter behavior at night. Forebrain deletion of MRs produced similar, but less pronounced, differences in motor activity and shelter behavior, while CA2-targeted deletion produced little alteration in behavior either during the day or at night. These findings provide evidence for the essential role of MRs in the regulation of behavior across the day/night cycle and shed a light on the role of MR development and expression on behavior.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":13001,"journal":{"name":"Hormones and Behavior","volume":"174 ","pages":"Article 105794"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-07-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144670548","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}