Effects of progesterone on the sexual behavior of castrated, testosterone-treated male cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis)

Abstract Zumpe, D., A.N. Clancy and R.P. Michael. Effects of progesterone on the sexual behavior of castrated, testosterone-treated male cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis). Physiol Behav 62(1) 61–67, 1997.—In male cynomolgus monkeys the synthetic progestin, medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA), decreases testosterone (T) levels and sexual behavior, binds to progestin receptors in brain, and reduces by about 70% the uptake of [ 3 H]androgens by both brain and genital tract tissues. To examine the behavioral effects of progesterone (P) itself, eight castrated, T-treated males were each tested twice weekly with an estrogenized female before, during, and after they were treated with two SC Silastic P implants. Data from six 4-week treatment periods were analyzed to facilitate comparisons with our previous data using MPA: i) baseline, ii) weeks 4–7 of P treatment, iii) weeks 8–11 of P treatment, iv) weeks 1–4 after P implants were removed, v) weeks 5–8 after P withdrawal, and finally vi) weeks 9–12 after P withdrawal (384 1 h behavior tests). Weekly blood samples (N = 192) were analyzed by radioimmunoassay to determine plasma levels of both T and P. P treatment, which resulted in high plasma P levels (about 44 ng/ml), produced decrements in measures of male sexual behavior and motivation that were both qualitatively and quantitatively similar to those produced by MPA treatment but, unlike MPA, P did not decrease plasma T levels or change them in any way (about 850 ng/100 ml throughout). The findings suggest that P implants may be preferable to weekly MPA injections in the treatment of male sex offenders because they require less patient compliance and may not have MPA's troubling side effects.