Scientists Identify Pheromones that Trigger Aggression between Male Mice

NIDCD-supported researchers at Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, Calif., and Harvard University are the first to identify protein pheromones responsible for the aggression response in mice. They describe their work in the Dec. 6, 2007, issue of Nature. Pheromones are chemical cues that are released into the air, secreted from glands, or excreted in urine. Members of the same species can sense these chemical cues, which trigger various social and reproductive behaviors. Pheromones in insects have been extensively studied, but much less is known about how they influence behavior in mammals.

Although humans do not produce the pheromones identified in this research, the brain regions responsible for behavior are similar in mice and humans. Consequently, with further research, this study may help contribute to our understanding of the neural pathways that play a role in human behavior.

Read the NIDCD news release.

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