SEXUAL DRIVE OF FEMALE RATS 'MASCULINIZED' BY TESTOSTERONE DURING GESTATION

Abstract

The sexual drive of 8 female rats with gross abnormalities of the vagina ("masculinization") induced before birth was compared with that of normal and ovariectomized control rats. Measures of estrous cycle (spontaneous activity), lordosis, and copulation were obtained. In all these measures, the masculinized rats were similar to the normal rats; in contrast the ovariectomized rats showed no evidence of sexual drive. It would thus appear that anatomical integrity of the vagina is not essential for the development of normal patterns of sexual behavior in the female rat.