Developmental changes in male Siberian hamsters (Phodopus sungorus) exposed to different gestational and postnatal photoperiods

In Siberian hamsters, juvenile somatic and reproductive development is influenced by the photoperiods experienced both during gestation and after birth. On the day of parturition, parents and young were transferred from either 16L (16 hr of light and 8 hr of darkness/day) or 10L to one of the three photoperiods (14L, 12L, and 10L), and on postnatal day 27 male juveniles were either pinealectomized or sham-operated. At various intervals from postnatal days 27-330, the following parameters were determined: body weight, testis size, pelage type, serum concentrations of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and prolactin (PRL). A postnatal photoperiod <14L was required to initiate delayed pubertal development followed by an eventual 'spontaneous' achievement of body weight, testis size, pelage, and serum FSH and PRL levels characteristic of adult, long-day males. The data suggest that serum FSH 'surges' in the pineal-intact hamsters are associated with spontaneous testicular development regardless of gestation photoperiod. The results also indicate that gestational photoperiod affects the timing of the molt to winter-type pelage and its eventual spontaneous development in pineal-intact hamsters that are exposed to short photoperiod following birth. Finally, our observations suggest that the interval timer that operates during prolonged short-day exposure to ultimately trigger a transition to the summer-type physiology may begin to function before birth in the offspring of females exposed to short photoperiod during gestation.