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Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 281: R1613-R1623, 2001;
0363-6119/01 $5.00
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Vol. 281, Issue 5, R1613-R1623, November 2001

A plastic interval timer synchronizes pubertal development of summer- and fall-born hamsters

Michael R. Gorman

Department of Psychology, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093-0109

Summer and fall decreases in day length induce reproductive regression in adult hamsters and delay reproductive maturation of their young. The following year pubertal development is triggered by an interval timer (IT) that renders animals refractory to inhibitory short day lengths after ~25 wk. Timing of gonadal and somatic development was examined among offspring born to Siberian hamsters in early-August vs. late-September day lengths. Pubertal maturation was delayed in both groups until late winter. Gonadal growth occurred at significantly later ages among August- vs. September-born males as did late-winter spurts in ponderal growth of both sexes. Timing of reproductive and somatic development depended on postnatal rather than prenatal photoperiod exposure and was unrelated to the circadian entrainment status of dams. When developmental patterns were assessed in relation to time of year, group differences were largely eliminated. Because the IT triggers these developmental events, its duration must be plastic. This plasticity facilitates a relative synchronization or entrainment of developmental milestones in hamsters born into different late-summer/early-fall photoperiods.

photorefractoriness; seasonality; photoperiodism; melatonin; nonresponsiveness


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