Gloria J. Lawrence, Ph.D.

TITLE: Health Services Investigator

COMPANY: Lockheed Martin; Business Process Solutions

Advisor: Dr. Stephen Kiefer

Dissertation Title

The relationship between copulatory behavior and serum levels of luteinizing hormone and testosterone in male rats: Effect of conditioning with odors.

Dissertation Abstract

In three experiments, significant avoidance of copulatory behavior (failure to ejaculate) was established in male rats that were made ill with lithium chloride following copulatory encounters with estrous females sprayed with a 2% almond solution. Weak copulatory avoidance was noted in male rats trained with estrous females that were not sprayed with the almond solution. Blood samples were collected in two experiments at the beginning of each study, after first ejaculation, and after training trials (Trials 3-8). A significant relationship was found between copulatory responses and the serum levels of both testosterone and luteinizing hormone. Serum levels showed significant increases, relative to baseline values, when the blood was collected after ejaculation. Blood samples collected after males failed to ejaculate showed significantly decreased hormone levels. In Experiment 3, fourteen daily subcutaneous injections of testosterone propionate failed to reinstate ejaculations in males that were conditioned to avoid copulatory behavior; a significant return to mounts and intromissions was noted, however. The results suggest that the conditioning paradigm used in the present experiments produced decreases in serum hormone levels as rats learned to avoid copulation. Exogenous replacement of testosterone propionate in conditioned rats failed to reinstate normal copulatory behavior.

Education

Ph.D., Psychology, Kansas State University, 1986