US EPA

5020770 

Journal Article 

Chronic exposure to inorganic mercury alters stress responses in male prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster) 

Soto, M; Lewis, R; Curtis, JT 

2019 

Yes 

Hormones and Behavior
ISSN: 0018-506X
EISSN: 1095-6867 

109 

53-55 

English 

30769014 

10.1016/j.yhbeh.2019.02.008 

WOS:000462103100007 

Male, but not female, prairie voles that experience chronic exposure to inorganic mercury display aberrant social behavior - avoiding unfamiliar conspecifics rather than approaching them. The mechanisms that underlie such behavioral changes are unknown, but likely involve the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. We tested this hypothesis by providing voles of both sexes with mercury chloride in their drinking water for ten weeks and then staging same-sex dyadic encounters after which plasma was assayed for corticosterone as an index of HPA activity. Consistent with sex-specific behavioral responses previously reported, mercury-treated males had lower plasma corticosterone after social encounters than did similarly-treated females or males that consumed normal drinking water. The results suggest that mercury-treated males may be less inclined toward social engagement with conspecifics due to reduced HPA activity.