Although expression of the Fos family of transcription factors is induced by environmental stimuli that trigger adaptive neuronal response, evidence that Fos family members mediate these responses is lacking. To address this issue, mice were generated with an inactivating mutation in the fosB gene. fosB mutant mice are profoundly deficient in their ability to nurture young animals but are norma...

This paper introduces a new kind of local consistency based on the general idea of singleton arc consistency (SAC). This is a reduced form of SAC that only considers neighbourhoods of a variable with a singleton domain; hence, the name “neighbourhood SAC” (NSAC). Like AC and SAC, NSAC has a unique fixpoint, so that NSAC algorithms will produce the same result when applied to a problem regardles...

Transmitting information via communicative signals is integral to interacting with conspecifics, and some species achieve this task by varying vocalizations to reflect context. Although signal variation is critical to social interactions, the underlying neural control has not been studied. In response to a predator, black-capped chickadees (Poecile atricapilla) produce mobbing calls (chick-a-de...

The adult female rats hoard large quantities of food during proestrus and continue hoarding if ovariectomised at proestrus (Group I). The hoarding score is lowest in diestrus and continue to remain low if ovariectomised during this phase (Group II). The scores in Group I and Group II are reversed in intracerebral administration of Progesterone and Estradiol Benzoate respectively into preoptic a...

NOONAN, M. AND M. B. KRJSTAL. Effects (~fmedial preoptic lesions on placentophaRia and on the onset ofmaternal be­ havior in the rat. PHYSJOL. BEHAV. 22(6) 1197-1202, 1979.-Lesions of the medial preoptic area (MPO) were produced through permanently indwelling electrodes 24 hr prior to parturition in pregnant rats, or 24 hr prior to donor-placenta presentation in virgin rats determined in a pret...

Preoptic area has neurons which change their firing rate along with spontaneous alterations of the cortical EEG between synchronization and desynchronization. The cortical EEG synchronization and desynchronization could be induced by stimulation of the caudal and the rostral brain stem respectively. This study was aimed at finding out whether stimulation of the brain stem structures produce the...

The changes in brain temperature and sleep-wakefulness were studied in rats during their exposure to different ambient temperatures of 18 degrees C, 24 degrees C and 30 degrees C, before and after N-methyl D-aspartic acid lesion of the medial preoptic area. The medial preoptic area lesion produced a decrease in sleep, and increase in brain temperature except at 30 degrees C. Increase and decrea...

During spring sheep do not normally ovulate but exposure to a ram can induce ovulation. In some ewes an LH surge is induced immediately after exposure to a ram thus raising questions about the control of this precocious LH surge. Our first aim was to determine the plasma concentrations of oestradiol (E2) E2 in anoestrous ewes before and after the "ram effect" in ewes that had a "precocious" LH ...

Maternal behavior is dynamic and highly sensitive to experiential and contextual factors. In this review, this plasticity will be explored, with a focus on how experiences of females occurring from the time of fetal development through to adulthood impact maternal behavior and the maternal brain. Variation in postpartum maternal behavior is dependent on estrogen sensitivity within the medial pr...