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Removal of reproductive suppression reveals latent sex differences in brain steroid hormone receptors in naked mole-rats, Heterocephalus glaber

Overview of attention for article published in Biology of Sex Differences, December 2015
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Title
Removal of reproductive suppression reveals latent sex differences in brain steroid hormone receptors in naked mole-rats, Heterocephalus glaber
Published in
Biology of Sex Differences, December 2015
DOI 10.1186/s13293-015-0050-x
Pubmed ID
Authors

Ashlyn Swift-Gallant, Kaiguo Mo, Deane E. Peragine, D. Ashley Monks, Melissa M. Holmes

Abstract

Naked mole-rats are eusocial mammals, living in large colonies with a single breeding female and 1-3 breeding males. Breeders are socially dominant, and only the breeders exhibit traditional sex differences in circulating gonadal steroid hormones and reproductive behaviors. Non-reproductive subordinates also fail to show sex differences in overall body size, external genital morphology, and non-reproductive behaviors. However, subordinates can transition to breeding status if removed from their colony and housed with an opposite-sex conspecific, suggesting the presence of latent sex differences. Here, we assessed the expression of steroid hormone receptor and aromatase messenger RNA (mRNA) in the brains of males and females as they transitioned in social and reproductive status. We compared in-colony subordinates to opposite-sex subordinate pairs that were removed from their colony for either 1 day, 1 week, 1 month, or until they became breeders (i.e., produced a litter). Diencephalic tissue was collected and mRNA of androgen receptor (Ar), estrogen receptor alpha (Esr1), progesterone receptor (Pgr), and aromatase (Cyp19a1) was measured using qPCR. Testosterone, 17β-estradiol, and progesterone from serum were also measured. As early as 1 week post-removal, males exhibited increased diencephalic Ar mRNA and circulating testosterone, whereas females had increased Cyp19a1 mRNA in the diencephalon. At 1 month post-removal, females exhibited increased 17β-estradiol and progesterone. The largest changes in steroid hormone receptors were observed in breeders. Breeding females had a threefold increase in Cyp19a1 and fivefold increases in Esr1 and Pgr, whereas breeding males had reduced Pgr and increased Ar. These data demonstrate that sex differences in circulating gonadal steroids and hypothalamic gene expression emerge weeks to months after subordinate animals are removed from reproductive suppression in their home colony.

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Mendeley readers

Mendeley readers

The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 49 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.

Geographical breakdown

Country Count As %
United Kingdom 1 2%
Unknown 48 98%

Demographic breakdown

Readers by professional status Count As %
Student > Ph. D. Student 9 18%
Student > Master 7 14%
Student > Bachelor 5 10%
Researcher 4 8%
Student > Postgraduate 4 8%
Other 5 10%
Unknown 15 31%
Readers by discipline Count As %
Agricultural and Biological Sciences 17 35%
Neuroscience 5 10%
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology 4 8%
Medicine and Dentistry 3 6%
Unspecified 1 2%
Other 4 8%
Unknown 15 31%
Attention Score in Context

Attention Score in Context

This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 2. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 29 March 2020.
All research outputs
#14,374,036
of 23,018,998 outputs
Outputs from Biology of Sex Differences
#319
of 473 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#205,068
of 389,886 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Biology of Sex Differences
#9
of 17 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 23,018,998 research outputs across all sources so far. This one is in the 35th percentile – i.e., 35% of other outputs scored the same or lower than it.
So far Altmetric has tracked 473 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a lot more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 20.0. This one is in the 27th percentile – i.e., 27% of its peers scored the same or lower than it.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 389,886 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one is in the 44th percentile – i.e., 44% of its contemporaries scored the same or lower than it.
We're also able to compare this research output to 17 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one is in the 41st percentile – i.e., 41% of its contemporaries scored the same or lower than it.