Principles of Hormone/Behavior Relations

Donald W. Pfaff heads the Laboratory of Neurobiology and Behavior at The Rockefeller University. He received his scientific training at Harvard College and MIT. He is a Member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Pfaff's laboratory focuses on steroid hormones and brain function, genes influencing neuronal functions, and generalized CNS arousal. He is the author or coauthor of over 10 books and more than 900 research publications. VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, Los Angeles, CA, USA Professor Jill E. Schneider has been teaching undergraduate courses in Behavioral Endocrinology and other topics in neuroscience at Lehigh University for over 25 years. She received graduate and postdoctoral training in biology and neuroscience at Wesleyan University and the University of Massachusetts, respectively, and was awarded the Frank A. Beach Award from the Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology for outstanding research in behavioral neuroendocrinology in 1991. Professor Schneider’s National Science Foundation-funded neuroendocrinology laboratory is focused on metabolic and hormonal mechanisms at the interface of reproductive and ingestive behavior.

Section I: Characterizing the Phenomena: Hormone Effects are Strong and Reliable1. Hormones Can Both Facilitate and Repress Behavioral Responses2. One Hormone Can have Many Effects: A Single Hormone Can Affect Complex Behaviors3. Hormone Combinations Can be Important for Influencing an Individual Behavior4. Hormone Metabolites Can be the Behaviorally Active Compounds5. There are Optimal Hormone Concentrations: Too Much or Too Little Can be Damaging6. Hormones Do Not ‘‘Cause’’ Behavior; They Alter Probabilities of Responses to Given Stimuli

Section II: History: Hormone Effects Can Depend on Family, Gender, and Development7. Familial/Genetic Dispositions to Hormone Responsiveness Can Influence Behavior8. The Sex of the Recipient can Influence the Behavioral Response9. Hormone Actions Early in Development Can Influence Hormone Responsiveness in the CNS During Adulthood10. Puberty Alters Hormone Secretion and Hormone Responsivity and Heralds Sex Differences11. Changes in Hormone Levels and Responsiveness During Aging Affect Behavior

Section III: Time: Hormonal Effects on Behavior Depend on Temporal Parameters12. Duration of Hormone Exposure Can Make a Big Difference: In Some Cases Longer is Better; In Other Cases Brief Pulses are Optimal for Behavioral Effects13. Hormonal Secretions and Responses are Affected by Biological Clocks

Section IV: Space: Spatial Aspects of Hormone Administration and Impact are Important14. Effects of a Given Hormone Can be Widespread Across the Body; Central Effects Consonant with Peripheral Effects Form Coordinated, Unified Mechanisms15. Hormones Can Act at All Levels of the Neuraxis to Exert Behavioral Effects; The Nature of the Behavioral Effect Depends on the Site of Action

Section V: Mechanisms: Molecular and Biophysical Mechanisms of Hormone Actions Give Clues to Future Therapeutic Strategies16. In Responsive Neurons, Rapid hormone Effects Can Facilitate Later Genomic Actions17. Gene Duplication and Splicing Products for Hormone Receptors in the CNS Often Have Different Behavioral Effects18. Hormone Receptors and Other Nuclear Proteins Influence Hormone Responsiveness

Section VI: Environment: Environmental Variables Influence Hormone/Behavior Relations19. Hormone Effects on Behavior Depend Upon Context20. Behavioral/Environmental Context also Alters Hormone Release

Section VII: Evolution21. Neuroendocrine Mechanisms Have Been Conserved to Provide Biologically Adaptive Body/Brain/Behavior Coordination