Exam 9: Sexual Behavior

The inhibition of infanticidal behavior requires:

Male-specific development and behavior is mediated by:

For chromosomally female (XX) flies that carry a Fru^Δ mutation, all of the following are true except:

Unisexual whiptail lizards exhibit male-like courtship behavior when:

Which neuropeptide is associated with each of the following processes? Select oxytocin, vasopressin, both, or neither. A. Acts through a G-protein-coupled receptor in peripheral tissues B. Regulates blood pressure homeostasis in both sexes C. Promotes milk production in females D. Promotes partner preference in male meadow voles E. Promotes partner preference in male prairie voles F. Is released from the posterior pituitary into the bloodstream

Would you expect to see male-typical behavior in adult rodents that have undergone each of the following treatments (Y/N)? Briefly explain your reasoning in each case. A. Are XY but have the aromatase gene knocked out in the brain B. Are XY but have the androgen receptor knocked out in the brain C. Are XX but were treated with exogenous estradiol during the first ten days after birth D. Are XX but were exposed to exogenous testosterone prenatally and then again as adults E. Are XX but were treated with exogenous dihydrotestosterone during the first ten days after birth

All of the following karyotypes result in male development except:

Just as sexual behavioral circuits in flies were dissected using a GAL4 driver that had been knocked into the Fru locus, genetic manipulation of subsets of neurons expressing sex hormone receptors can provide insights into the function of specific brain nuclei in mammalian sexual behavior. A. How could the Cre/loxP system be used to determine whether estradiol receptor-expressing neurons in the VMH are necessary in males for mating with females and aggression towards intruder males? B. What experimental evidence suggests that estradiol reception by VMH neurons is sufficient to produce either mating or aggression, depending on the intensity of the stimulus? C. Suggest some experiments that could be used to help determine whether the same population of VMH neurons mediates mating vs. aggression in males.

The Drosophila courtship ritual is considered to be an innate behavior-why? Does this mean that this behavior is not influenced by experience? Briefly explain your reasoning.

The medial preoptic area, medial amygdala, and bed nucleus of stria terminalis are larger in male rodents than in their female counterparts. Postnatal castration reduces the size of these nuclei in males, while neonatal testosterone treatment or inhibition of programmed cell death increases their size in females. Are these sexual dimorphisms due to direct action by testosterone or by estradiol? Describe at least two experiments and outcomes that would allow you to distinguish between these models.

Nematocin appears to be a homolog of vasopressin/oxytocin because:

Some aspects of bird song are innate, while others must be learned and practiced. What kind of song would be produced by a male bird with a lesion in area X who was raised with a tutor male of a different species?

Sex-specific splicing of both Fruitless and Doublesex is essential for the establishment of normal neuronal circuitry underlying courtship behavior. Please indicate whether Dsx^F or Fru^M is responsible for each of the following functions. A. Promotes programmed cell death in developing P1 neurons B. Prevents programmed cell death in the motor neuron innervating the muscle of Lawrence C. Promotes male-typical projection patterns in developing P1 neurons D. Prevents midline crossing by taste receptor neurons on the foreleg E. Promotes projection patterns in third order neurons that mediate aggression in response to the male pheromone cVA

Which of the following conditions would be expected to correlate with an increase in circulating testosterone from exogenous androgenic steroid use (for example, by athletes)?

Conditional silencing allows researchers to test whether particular sets of neurons are required for specific behaviors. You suspect that a set of neurons expressing a gene called drifter might be involved in Drosophila courtship. Describe the tools that you would need and the experiments (and controls) that you would use to test your hypothesis.

Infusion of oxytocin into the brain of an ovariectomized (unreceptive) female prairie vole is sufficient for her to develop preference for a nearby male. But what is the neurological basis for this preference? There are established techniques for making knockout and transgenic mice, but since mice do not exhibit pair-bonding behavior, researchers are currently developing similar techniques for use in voles. Describe some specific experiments that you would like to perform in order to determine in which neurons oxytocin reception is present, necessary, and sufficient for female vole partner preference.

In mammals, the TrpC2 channel is essential for all of the following except for:

Activation of the following neurons in a wild-type XY fly should promote courtship:

Drosophila females' receptivity to courtship is inhibited by: