Photoperiod is an important environmental cue in the regulation of reproductive activity in Mongolian gerbils. Photoperiodic information is ultimately transduced into a hormonal signal by the pineal gland. We examined the effect of constantrelease melatonin capsules on the testicular size and body weights of male Mongolian gerbils exposed to a long (14L: 10D) photoperiod. | Turk J Biol 27 (2003) 209-214 © TÜB‹TAK Melatonin Implants Have No Effect on the Testis Volume and Body Weight in Mongolian Gerbils Alper KARAKAfi, Bülent GÜNDÜZ Department of Biology, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Abant ‹zzet Baysal University, Bolu -TURKEY Received: Abstract: Photoperiod is an important environmental cue in the regulation of reproductive activity in Mongolian gerbils. Photoperiodic information is ultimately transduced into a hormonal signal by the pineal gland. We examined the effect of constantrelease melatonin capsules on the testicular size and body weights of male Mongolian gerbils exposed to a long (14L: 10D) photoperiod. Three groups were formed: control (n = 10), intact + melatonin implant (n = 10) and pinealectomy + melatonin implant (n = 10). The testes and body weights of the gerbils were recorded every week for 8 weeks. Body weights (76 ± g intact + melatonin implant; 79 ± g pinealectomy + melatonin implant) and testes weights ( ± g intact + melatonin implant; ± g pinealectomy + melatonin implant) of intact + melatonin implanted and pinealectomy + melatonin implanted groups were not statistically different from those of the control group (80 ± g body weight; ± g testes weight) (P > ) at the end of the study. Regardless of treatment, the animals fully reflected the characteristics of a long photoperiod. These results indicate that masking the endogenous melatonin rhythm via constant-release melatonin implants has no effect on the testis volume or body weight of Mongolian gerbils when the animals are kept in a long photoperiod. Key Words: Implantation, Melatonin, Pinealectomy, Gerbil Mongolian Gerbillerde Melatonin ‹mplantasyonlar›n›n Testis Hacmi ve Vücut A¤›rl›klar› Üzerine Bir Etkisi Yoktur Özet: Mongolian gerbillerin üreme aktivitelerinin düzenlenmesinde fotoperiyot önemli bir faktördür. Fotoperiyodik bilgi en son pineal bez taraf›ndan hormonal sinyale çevrilir. Bu .
