Sexual response

Perret M. and Schilling A. (1995). Sexual responses to urinary chemosignals depend on photoperiod in a male primate. Physiol Behav 58, 633-639. 

Marr, J. N. and Gardner, L. E. (1965) Early olfactory experience and later social behavior in the rat Preference, sexual responsiveness and care of young. J.Genetic Psych. 107, 167-174. 

Removal of the adrenal gland, and thus adrenal androgens, has been associated with an inhibition of sexual behavior in both humans and primates. In addition, in primates exogenous androgens, but not estrogens, reportedly reversed the effects of adrenalectomy. Exogenous androgen treatments reportedly can facilitate sexual responses in women (Sherwin, 1996). 

Newton, N. 1973. Interrelationships between sexual responsiveness, birth, and breast feeding. In Contemporary Sexual Behavior Critical Issues in the 1970s. J. Zubin and J. Money. Baltimore Johns Hopkins University Press, pp. 77-98. 

The cyclase produces cAMP which results in opening of a Na" ion channel in the membrane of the sensory cell. If a sufficient number of Na " ions enter, this depolarises the membrane and initiates an action potential along the axon to the olfactory nerve. Further effects depend upon interaction between the nerves and synapses within the olfactory centre in the brain. This can result in physiological effects in other parts of the body which define the function of the pheromone. The effects of pheromones on the sexual responses of men and women are discussed in Chapter 19 (see Figure 19.17). 

Candidate compounds for sex pheromones have been isolated from cervico-vaginal mucus of domestic cows. Several diols, ketones, and amines were identified in fractions that released sexual responses in bulls, such as sniffing and licking the sample, fiehmen, penile contraction, and preputial secretion (Klemm etal, 1987). 

CS3 50 Saso, L. Effects of drug abuse on sexual response. Ann 1st Super Sanita 2002 ... 

The sexual response of adult males depends on both intrinsic and environmental factors. Males become responsive to the pheromone 6-9 days after adult emergence (Wharton et al, 1954 Hawkins and Rust, 1977). Antennation and erect body posture appear at the same hme during sexual maturation, followed by, in this order, increased locomotion, running, wing-raising, and abdominal extension (Silverman,... 

With regard to male behavior, several recent reports have delineated the time course of maturation of male sexual response, its diel periodicity and circadian regulation, and behavioral tactics employed by males in orienting to females. As in other insects, cockroaches integrate visual and olfactory cues, but the orientation mechanisms have been little studied, especially under natural conditions. In... 

Hawkins, W. A. and Rust, M. K. (1977). Factors influencing male sexual response in the American cockroach Periplaneta americana. Journal of Chemical Ecology 3 ... 

FIGURE 5—57. Serotonergic neurons descending down the spinal cord may be responsible for controlling certain spinal reflexes that are part of the sexual response, such as orgasm and ejaculation. 

From a simple psychopharmacological perspective, the human sexual response can be divided into three phases, each with distinct and relatively nonoverlapping neurotransmitter functions, namely, libido, arousal, and orgasm. 

FIGURE 14—2. Psychopharmacology of the human sexual response, part 2. Sexual arousal in peripheral genitalia is accompanied by erections in men and lubrication and swelling in women. Both nitric oxide and acetylcholine mediate these actions. 

In summary, there are three major psychopharmacological stages of the human sexual response (Fig. 14—7). Multiple neurotransmitters mediate these stages, but only some of them are understood. Libido (stage 1) has dopaminergic dimensions to its pharmacology. The mechanism of arousal (stage 2), which is characterized by... 

FIGURE 14—6. Psychopharmacology of the human sexual response, part 3. Orgasm is the third stage of the human sexual response, accompanied by ejaculation in men. Serotonin exerts an inhibitory action on orgasm and norepinephrine an excitatory or facilitatory action. 

FIGURE 14-30. Psychopharmacology is beginning to identify new therapies that are sex-specific and related to sexual functioning. These include treatments for the human sexual response, especially for erectile dysfunction in men, as well as a better appreciation of the role of hormones in managing mood and cognitive disorders in women. 

In this chapter, issues in psychopharmacology related to sex and sexuality were discussed. This included an overview of the neurotransmitter mechanisms involved in the three psychopharmacological stages of the human sexual response, namely libido, arousal, and orgasm. Neurotransmitters that mediate each of these three stages were discussed, as well as drugs that facilitate and inhibit these stages. A specific introduction to the nitric oxide neurotransmitter system was outlined. 

---