Ive skew with a single PubMed ID:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27362935 female (queen) monopolizing reproduction in each colony. Non-reproductive females in the presence of the queen are physiologically suppressed to the extent that they are anovulatory. This blockade is thought to be caused by a disruption in the normal gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) secretion from the hypothalamus. In order to understand the underlying physiological mechanisms of reproductive suppression in subordinate females we studied the expression of steroid hormone receptors and the androgen-converting enzyme aromatase in forebrain regions involved in the control of reproductive behaviour in female breeders and non-breeders from intact colonies. Additionally, we included in our analysis females that experienced the release from social suppression by being removed from the presence of the queen. Results: We found expression of androgen receptor, estrogen receptor and aromatase in several forebrain regions of female Damaraland mole-rats. Their distribution matches previous findings in other mammals. Quantification of the hybridisation signal revealed that queens had increased expression of androgen receptors compared to non-breeders and removed PubMed ID:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28607003 non-breeders in most brain regions examined, which include the medial preoptic area (MPOA), the principal nucleus of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BSTp), the ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus (VMH), the arcuate nucleus (ARC) and the medial amygdala (MeA). Furthermore, breeders had increased estrogen receptor expression in the anteroventral periventricular nucleus (AVPV) and in the MeA, while aromatase expression in the AVPV was significantly reduced compared to non-breeders. Absence of social suppression was associated with increased androgen receptor expression in the ARC, increased estrogen receptor expression in the MeA and BSTp and reduced aromatase expression in the AVPV. Conclusion: This study shows that social suppression and breeding differentially affect the neuroendocrine phenotype of female Damaraland mole-rats. The differential expression pattern of estrogen receptor and aromatase in the AVPV between breeders and non-breeders supports the view that this region plays an important role in mediating the physiological suppression in subordinate females. Keywords: Androgen receptor, Estrogen receptor alpha, Aromatase, In situ hybridization, Fukomys damarensis, Social status* Correspondence: [email protected] 1 Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, 0028 Pretoria, South Africa Full list of author information is available at the end of the article?2014 Voigt et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) Pyrvinium pamoate mechanism of action applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.Voigt et al. Frontiers in Zoology 2014, 11:38 http://www.frontiersinzoology.com/content/11/1/Page 2 ofIntroduction Animals living in social groups establish distinct dominance hierarchies, and one characteristic of cooperatively breeding species is that reproduction is skewed with the dominant individuals monopolizing breeding opportunities while the non-breeding group me.
