title: Effects of Medial Preoptic Lesions on  Placentophagia and on the Onset of Maternal  Behavior in the Rat
creator: Noonan, Michael
creator: Kristal, Dr. Mark B
subject: Psychobiology
subject: Physiological Psychology
subject: Behavioral Neuroscience
description: 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 pretest to be placentophages. The lesions had no disruptive effect on placentophagia in the virgin females. However, MPO lesions did delay the onset of placentophagia, pup-retrieval, and nestbuilding in some parturient rats. In others, lesions produced an impairment (in latency and quality) only of nest-building. None showed any impairment of pup-licking, or in the clear tendency to leave excreted waste away from the gathered pups. These results suggest the possibility of at least semi-independent mechanisms for the various components of maternal behavior.
publisher: Pergamon Press and Brain Research Publ.
date: 1979
type: Journal (Paginated)
type: PeerReviewed
format: application/pdf
identifier: http://cogprints.org/6213/1/MPO.pdf
identifier:   Noonan, Michael and Kristal, Dr. Mark B  (1979) Effects of Medial Preoptic Lesions on Placentophagia and on the Onset of Maternal Behavior in the Rat.  [Journal (Paginated)]     
relation: http://cogprints.org/6213/