Androgen and estrogen sensitivity of bird song: a comparative view on gene regulatory levels.

ABSTRACT: Singing of songbirds is sensitive to testosterone and its androgenic and estrogenic metabolites in a species-specific way. The hormonal effects on song pattern are likely mediated by androgen receptors (AR) and estrogen receptor alpha (ERα), ligand activated transcription factors that are expressed in neurons of various areas of the songbirds' vocal control circuit. The distribution of AR in this circuit is rather similar between species while that of ERα is species variant and concerns a key vocal control area, the HVC (proper name). We discuss the regulation of the expression of the cognate AR and ERα and putative splice variants. In particular, we suggest that transcription factor binding sites in the promoter of these receptors differ between bird species. Further, we suggest that AR-

SUBMITTER: Frankl-Vilches C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5790841 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature