EFFECTS OF SOCIAL STIMULI ON ADRENAL CORTEX IN MALE MICE

Male mice were housed either in wire-mesh cages placed adjacent to one another or in similar cages separated by wooden partitions. A higher level of adrenocortical function, measured by relative adrenal weights and adrenal ascorbic acid depletion, was found in the mice which had been allowed partial social contact. These results demonstrate that the adrenal cortex not only responds to social stimuli traditionally regarded as stressors but is also sensitive to more subtle changes in the social invironment. © 1969, Psychonomic Journals, Inc.. All rights reserved.