| Title: | "Seasonal morphometry of the vomeronasal organ in the marsupial mouse, Antechinus subtropicus" |
| Author(s): | Aland RC; Gosden E; Bradley AJ; |
| Address: | "School of Rural Medicine, University of New England, Armidale, NSW, Australia. raland@une.edu.au. School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia. raland@une.edu.au. Research Methods Group, Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, QLD, Australia. School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia" |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1097-4687 (Electronic) 0362-2525 (Print) 0022-2887 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "The vomeronasal system consists of a peripheral organ and the connected central neuronal networks. The central connections are sexually dimorphic in rodents, and in some species, parameters of the vomeronasal organ (VNO) vary with sex, hormonal exposure, body size and seasonality. The VNO of the dasyurid marsupial mouse, Antechinus subtropicus is presumed to be functional. The unusual life history (male semelparity) is marked by distinct seasonality with differences in hormonal environments both between males and females, and in males at different time points. Body size parameters (e.g., length, weight) display sexual dimorphism and, in males, a pronounced weight gain before breeding is followed by a rapid decline during the single, short reproductive season. VNO morphometry was investigated in male and female A. subtropicus to identify possible life cycle associated activity. The overall length of the VNO is positively correlated with the size of the animal. The amount of sensory epithelium exhibits a negative correlation, decreasing with increasing size of the animal. The effects of sex and breeding condition are not obvious, although they do suggest that sensory vomeronasal epithelium mass declines in the breeding period. The VNO may be more important in A. subtropicus before breeding when it may participate in synchronising reproduction and in the development of the male stress response. J. Morphol. 277:1517-1530, 2016. (c) 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc" |
| Keywords: | Animals Body Size Breeding Female Male Marsupialia/*anatomy & histology Mice Olfactory Mucosa/anatomy & histology *Seasons Sex Characteristics Vomeronasal Organ/*anatomy & histology/growth & development Pheromone chemical communication cortisol seasonal v; |
| Notes: | "MedlineAland, Rachel Claire Gosden, Edward Bradley, Adrian J eng 2016/09/20 J Morphol. 2016 Nov; 277(11):1517-1530. doi: 10.1002/jmor.20593. Epub 2016 Sep 19" |
