Abstract
P-CHLOROPHENYLALANINE (POP A), a compound that inhibits the synthesis of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) without affecting that of noradrenaline1, produces compulsive sexual activity in male animals. This effect was observed by Ferguson et al. in cats2, by Tagliamorite et al. in rats and rabbits3 and by Shillito in rats4. The compulsive sexual activity is not caused by a depletion of indole hormones in the pineal gland, for we found that PCPA elicited sexual stimulation in pinealectomized animals. Further, sexual stimulation induced by PCPA is inhibited by restoring brain 5-HT levels with 5-hydroxy-tryptophan3, a precursor of 5-HT. This effect thus seems to be associated with the depletion of brain 5-HT. Moreover, because sexual stimulation induced by PCPA is potentiated when catecholamine levels in brain are increased with pargyline, an inhibitor of monoamine oxidase, we postulated that both brain 5-HT and catecholamines control sexual behaviour in male animals, 5-HT inhibiting sexual behaviour and catecholamines stimulating it. Our results show that the effect of PCPA on sexual behaviour in male rats is not only prevented by castration but is strikingly potentiated by testosterone.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Koe, B. K., and Weissman, A., J. Pharm. Exp. Ther., 154, 499 (1966).
Ferguson, J., Henriksen, S., Cohen, H., Hoyt, G., Mitchell, G., McGarr, K., Pubenson, D., Ryan, L., and Dement, W., Psychophysiology, 6, 221 (1969).
Tagliamonte, A., Tagliamonte, P., Gessa, G. L., and Brodie, B. B., Science, 166, 1433 (1969).
Shillito, E. E., Brit. J. Pharmacol., 38, 305 (1970).
Laverty, R., and Taylor, K. M., Anal. Biochem., 22, 269 (1968).
Bogdanski, D. F., Weissbach, H., and Udenfriend, S., J. Neurochem., 1, 272 (1957).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
GESSA, G., TAGLIAMONTE, A., TAGLIAMONTE, P. et al. Essential Role of Testosterone in the Sexual Stimulation induced by p-Chlorophenylalanine in Male Animals. Nature 227, 616–617 (1970). https://doi.org/10.1038/227616a0
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/227616a0
This article is cited by
-
Sexual behavior of the male schizophrenic: The impact of illness and medications
Archives of Sexual Behavior (1981)
-
Behavioral effects of ACTH and MSH peptides
Journal of Endocrinological Investigation (1981)
-
Attenuation of stereotyped behaviour by sex steroids
Psychopharmacology (1978)
-
The influence of hypothalamically administered reserpine on the sexual behavior of the female cat
Psychopharmacology (1976)
-
Fluoreszenzmikroskopische und elektronenmikroskopische Untersuchungen am Pinealorgan verschiedener Vogelarten
Zeitschrift f�r Zellforschung und Mikroskopische Anatomie (1973)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.