Female major histocompatibility complex type affects male testosterone levels and sperm number in the horse (Equus caballus).

ABSTRACT: Odours of vertebrates often contain information about the major histocompatibility complex (MHC), and are used in kin recognition, mate choice or female investment in pregnancy. It is, however, still unclear whether MHC-linked signals can also affect male reproductive strategies. We used horses (Equus caballus) to study this question under experimental conditions. Twelve stallions were individually exposed either to an unfamiliar MHC-similar mare and then to an unfamiliar MHC-dissimilar mare, or vice versa. Each exposure lasted over a period of four weeks. Peripheral blood testosterone levels were determined weekly. Three ejaculates each were collected in the week after exposure to both mares (i.e. in the ninth week) to determine mean sperm number and sperm velocity. We found high testoste

SUBMITTER: Burger D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4424655 | biostudies-literature | 2015 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature