Nervus terminalis lesions: II. Enhancement of lordosis induced by tactile stimulation in the hamster

Abstract

The involvement of the nervus terminalis in lordosis, induced by manual tactile stimulation, was investigated in the female hamster. Lordosis latencies were measured in response to manual lumbosacral tactile stimulation, which was performed at 5 different delay times after the previous lordotic response. Nervus terminalis lesion (TNX), control forebrain lesion (FBX), and sham (SH) surgeries were performed after preoperative data was collected, and animals were tested again postoperatively. Latencies to lordose were compared separately for each delay time between preoperative and postoperative tests. The TNX group showed small, but significant, decreases in lordosis latencies postoperatively. Lordosis latencies for the SH and FBX groups did not change. These results suggest that the nervus terminalis plays a minor role in mediating sensory processing during reproductive encounters.