Seymour Kessler

Catecholamines, strain differences in biosynthetic enzyme activity in mice.

Abstract In five strains of inbred mice, activities of phenylethanolamine N -methyl transferase and tyrosine hydroxylase and amounts of norepinephrine and epinephrine in the adrenal gland vary markedly. Tyrosine hydroxylase activity in the brain also varies widely. The fact that these measures vary independently of each other suggests that several genetic factors are involved. The finding of genetic differences affecting catecholamine synthesis has implications for the study of catecholamine regulatory mechanisms and the relationship between catecholamines and behavior.

The XYY karyotype and criminality: A review

CRIMINALITY was once thought to be the result of demonic or supernatural forces. Beginning with the eighteenth century, attempts were made to attribute criminal behavior to certain physical characteristics of the individual. Gall and Spurzheim, for example, attempted to associate various bumps on the head with specific personality traits. In Italy, Cesare Lombroso, and in the United States Ernest Hooton, argued that criminal behavior reflected an ativistic level of biological organization which had its concomitants in certain physical stigmata or anthropometric ‘marks of inferiority’.1 More recently, SHELDON,~ S. and E. GLUECK,~ and others4 have reported a relationship between criminality and bodily physique. The contribution of genetic factors to the production of criminal behavior is expressed in the concept of ‘bad seed’ and is explicit in the studies of SIR FRANCIS GALTON~ and of the Jukes and Kallikak families by DUGDALE~ and GODDARD’ respectively. Attempts at estimating the hereditary contribution to criminal behavior have been made by means of twin studies.8 But, the confounding of common genotypic and experiential factors among twin pairs make these studies difficult to interpret. In recent years fresh interest in possible genotypic contributions to criminal behavior has arisen due to the finding of a relatively large number of individuals with various chromosomal abnormalities in maximum security institutions for the mentally ill, the mentally subnormal, and among prison populations. Several recent crimes of violence perpetrated by individuals who subsequently were shown to have an abnormal chromosomal constitution have also received wide notoriety. Two specific cases stand out. In. both, the grounds for the defense rested heavily on arguments of legal irresponsibility resulting from the fact that the defendant carried a 47,XYY* karyotype. In France, Daniel Hugon was convicted of murdering a prostitute. During the course of his trial a special commission was appointed by the court to testify on the possible contribution of the chromosomal abnormality to the crime. The jury, apparently allowing for extenuating circumstances, decided on a somewhat lesser penalty than usual for this type of crime. In Australia, Lawrence E. Hammell was acquitted of murder on the grounds that he was legally insane at the time of the crime. According to newspaper accounts,10 the * The nomenclature is that established at the Chicago Conference, 1966.9 In further citations, we will refer to this karyotype only as XYY.

A genetic analysis of aggressive behavior in two strains of mice

Examination of BALB/cJ and A/J mouse strains revealed marked differences in their levels of isolation-induced aggression. Using the dangler paradigm, we found that BALB/cJ males were uniformly aggressive, while A/J males showed no tendency to attaak. Genetic analysis showed that the expression of aggressive behavior in the F1, F2, and backcross generations was consistent with the transmission of high aggressivity as a single, autosomal recessive trait. Although the data are consistent with a majorlocus effect, more complex polygenic modes of inheritance have not been excluded.

The genetics of Drosophila mating behaviour. I. Organization of mating speed in Drosophila pseudoobscura

The factors which determine the mating speed in Drosophila pseudoobscura have been examined by utilizing fast and slow mating strains produced by selection for mating speed. Sixty-six per cent of the total variance is due to female effects whereas males contribute 11·8 per cent without significant interaction. Thus, mating speed in D. pseudoobscura, under the conditions of the present study, is largely determined by the female; the male plays a significant, but subordinate role.

The genetics of pheromonally mediated aggression in mice. I. Strain differences in the capacity of male urinary odors to elicit aggression

Castrates scented with urine from intact DBA males elicited greater attack with a shorter attack latency than castrates scented either with male urine from other strains or with water. The results suggest that genetic factors affect pheromonally elicited aggression in mice.

Differential posteclosion housing experiences and reproduction in Drosophila

Differential housing following eclosion was found to affect the mating behaviour of both sexes of Drosophila melanogaster. Flies housed in isolation showed higher mating frequencies and shorter latencies than did group-housed flies. Given a choice of an isolated or group-housed male, females tended to mate with males with similar housing experiences as themselves. Given a choice of an isolated or group-housed female, males strongly preferred the former. The possibility is advanced that these effects are mediated by olfactory stimuli.

Genetic differences in mechanisms involving neuroregulators

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses genetic differences in mechanisms involving neuroregulators. The potential role of genetic factors becomes of great importance in terms of a number of theories of the illness. The possibility of genetic variation in catecholamine synthesizing activity is suggested by several lines of evidence. In animals, strain and subline differences have been reported in the amounts of biogenic amines in brain regions of mice and rats and in the utilization and uptake of cardiac norepinephrine in mice. In humans, a variety of forms of pheochromocytoma have been shown to be associated with familial factors. There are known genetic variations in adrenocortical and adrenomedullary structure. Genetic variations in steroid hormones produced by the adrenal cortex and in thyroid hormone have been associated with behavioral changes, and further e search for genetic variation in the enzymes involved in catecholamine biosynthesis would be fruitful. The use of inbred mouse strains is particularly advantageous in studies of genetic variation and provides a powerful tool for subsequent behavioral and genetic analysis.

Postisolation aggression and olfactory cues.

Socially isolated DBA/2J male mice chronically subjected to soiled bedding from group-housed males showed less aggressivity than isolates subjected either to soiled bedding from other isolated males or to fresh bedding. The findings suggest that postisolation aggression in mice may result from the gradual disinhibition from a primer pheromone, present in groups of male mice, which acts to suppress aggressive attack.

Sleep and serotonin in two strains of Mus musculus.

Abstract Two strains of Mus musculus , C57BL/10J and BALB/CJ, were studied in an attempt to check for any naturally occurring correlation between sleep and brain serotonin. The C57BL/10J compared with the BALB/CJ had more slow wave sleep throughout the day and particularly during hours of darkness. During peak sleep periods, C57BL/10J also had more REM sleep. At three different times of the day (1200, 1600, and 0400 hr) neurochemical assays were done on brain stem and cerebral cortex for tryptophan and serotonin levels and for tryptophan hydroxylase activity. An inspection of the ordering of means for strains suggested that the greater amount of slow wave sleep for C57BL/10J was paralleled by higher brain stem and cortex tryptophan levels, higher cortex tryptophan hydroxylase activity, and higher cortex serotonin levels. An inspection of temporal trends across strain and time of day suggested that slow wave sleep may vary negatively with brain stem tryptophan hydroxylase activity, brain stem serotonin level, and cortex tryptophan level. While no simple sleep-serotonin relationship obtained, because of such trends the data were interpreted as being generally consistent with the hypothesis of an active serotonergic sleep inducing mechanism in brain.

Genetic and biochemical studies of the adrenal lipid depletion phenotype in mice.

Study of F1 and backcross progenies from crosses between DBA/2 and strains carrying the adrenal lipid depletion (ald) gene indicated that the adrenal lipid depletion character is due to the operation of two or more interacting gene loci. In C57BL/10, DBA/2, and their F1 hybrids, variation in adrenocortical sudanophilia was highly correlated with both cholesterol ester content and the capacity for the production of corticosterone in vitro. In F1×DBA/2 backcross progeny, however, the degree of adrenocortical sudanophilia remained correlated only with cholesterol ester content and not with the capacity for corticosterone production. Thus, in these strains, adrenal cholesterol ester concentration is not necessarily the determining factor of corticosterone production in vitro; the two phenotypic characters are controlled by independent genetic mechanisms.