Orexin A (hypocretin-1) application at the medial preoptic area potentiates male sexual behavior in rats.

摘要

The medial preoptic area plays an important role in the regulation of male sexual behavior in rats, and this area receives orexinergic inputs. The role of orexinergic inputs in the medial preoptic area in sexual behavior has not been studied, though they have been shown to play a role in some other physiological functions. In this study, the changes in male sexual behavior in rats were studied after local injection of orexin A (Hypocretin-1) at the medial preoptic area. The results of the study showed that orexin A application at the medial preoptic area increased sexual arousal as well as the copulatory performance. Sexual arousal is one of the physiological stimuli, which influences wakefulness. It is possible that the earlier reports showing increased wakefulness, on application of orexin A at the medial preoptic area/basal forebrain, has a contribution from sexual arousal.