Jacques Balthazart
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View article: Photoperiodism, testosterone and adult neurogenesis in canaries ( <i>Serinus canaria</i> )
Photoperiodism, testosterone and adult neurogenesis in canaries ( <i>Serinus canaria</i> ) Open
Domestic strains of canaries ( Serinus canaria ) variably respond to photoperiod changes and apparently stay in breeding state for extended periods. Fife Fancy canaries are supposed to be similar to the native species living at 27–39° nort…
View article: Androgen signaling in LMAN regulates song stereotypy in male canaries
Androgen signaling in LMAN regulates song stereotypy in male canaries Open
During breeding when testosterone concentrations are high, male songbirds that are open-ended vocal learners like canaries (Serinus canaria) tend to produce a stable, stereotyped song that facilitates mate attraction or territory defense. …
View article: Exploring neuronal markers and early social environment influence in divergent quail lines selected for social motivation
Exploring neuronal markers and early social environment influence in divergent quail lines selected for social motivation Open
Vertebrates, including humans exhibit a wide range of social behaviors that are crucial for the adaptation and survival of most species. The brain organization and function are shaped by genetic and environmental factors, although their pr…
View article: Cross-species conservation in the regulation of parvalbumin by perineuronal nets
Cross-species conservation in the regulation of parvalbumin by perineuronal nets Open
Parvalbumin (PV) neurons play an integral role in regulating neural dynamics and plasticity. Therefore, understanding the factors that regulate PV expression is important for revealing modulators of brain function. While the contribution o…
View article: Cross-species conservation in the regulation of parvalbumin by perineuronal nets
Cross-species conservation in the regulation of parvalbumin by perineuronal nets Open
Parvalbumin (PV) neurons play an integral role in regulating neural dynamics and plasticity. Therefore, understanding the factors that regulate PV expression is important for revealing modulators of brain function. While the contribution o…
View article: Conclusion
Conclusion Open
This book documents the changes that have affected the functioning of scientific research over the past five decades.The comments presented are directly inspired by my career as a biologist involved in the study of neuroendocrinology and b…
View article: The Race to Publish and the Inadequate Methods of Evaluating Researchers
The Race to Publish and the Inadequate Methods of Evaluating Researchers Open
Until the middle of the 20th century, scientific researchers, whether employed full time in a laboratory or working as amateurs, for example in the field of zoology, carried out work and decided to publish the results if they had found som…
View article: Essential Modifications
Essential Modifications Open
It seems clear that a fairly profound modification of the way researchers are evaluated is needed. The selective publication of results seems to be the most frequent problem that threatens the effectiveness, validity and therefore the repr…
View article: The Scientific Community's Fight Against these Aberrations
The Scientific Community's Fight Against these Aberrations Open
The evaluation of published research is an ongoing process and the disclosure of problems in published work is facilitated by the existence of specialized websites. The PubPeer platform collects comments mainly from anonymous researchers a…
View article: The Invention of Journal Impact Factors
The Invention of Journal Impact Factors Open
The progressive digitization of all scientific publications and their instantaneous accessibility through computers has also led to the considerable development of a new scientific activity, bibliometrics: the quantitative analysis of scie…
View article: The Consequences
The Consequences Open
The pressure to publish more and more in high-impact journals exerted on researchers by the funding system has obviously led them to adapt their publication strategy. This has led, at best, to a deterioration in the quality of the articles…
View article: The Development of Publishing Giants and Open Access
The Development of Publishing Giants and Open Access Open
The last 50 years have seen an extremely significant development in scientific research activity. The number of scientific journals grew very significantly, as the publication of original research became a very lucrative business. The econ…
View article: Sex differences in song syntax and syllable diversity in testosterone-induced songs of adult male and female canaries
Sex differences in song syntax and syllable diversity in testosterone-induced songs of adult male and female canaries Open
Background Behavioral sex differences are widespread in the animal world. These differences can be qualitative (i.e., behavior present in one sex but not the other, a true sex dimorphism) or quantitative (behavior is present at a higher ra…
View article: Effects of the depletion of neural progenitors by focal X-ray irradiation on song production and perception in canaries
Effects of the depletion of neural progenitors by focal X-ray irradiation on song production and perception in canaries Open
The song control nucleus HVC of songbirds has emerged as a widespread model system to study adult neurogenesis and the factors that modulate the incorporation of new neurons, including seasonal state, sex differences or sex steroid hormone…
View article: Does the syrinx, a peripheral structure, constrain effects of sex steroids on behavioral sex reversal in adult canaries?
Does the syrinx, a peripheral structure, constrain effects of sex steroids on behavioral sex reversal in adult canaries? Open
We previously confirmed that effects of testosterone (T) on singing activity and on the volume of brain song control nuclei are sexually differentiated in adult canaries: females are limited in their ability to respond to T as males do. He…
View article: Testosterone treatment reveals marked sex differences in song diversity and syllable syntax in adult canaries
Testosterone treatment reveals marked sex differences in song diversity and syllable syntax in adult canaries Open
Background. Behavioral sex differences are widespread in the animal world. These differences can be qualitative (i.e., behavior present in one sex but not the other, a true sex dimorphism) or quantitative (behavior is present at a higher r…
View article: Ablation of neural progenitors by focal X-ray irradiation: effects on song production and perception in canaries
Ablation of neural progenitors by focal X-ray irradiation: effects on song production and perception in canaries Open
The song control nucleus HVC of songbirds has emerged as a widespread model system to study adult neurogenesis and the factors that modulate the incorporation of new neurons, including seasonal state, sex differences or sex steroid hormone…
View article: The neural distribution of the avian homologue of oxytocin, mesotocin, in two songbird species, the zebra finch and the canary: A potential role in song perception and production
The neural distribution of the avian homologue of oxytocin, mesotocin, in two songbird species, the zebra finch and the canary: A potential role in song perception and production Open
The avian homologue of oxytocin (OT), formerly called mesotocin, influences social behaviors in songbirds and potentially song production. We sought to characterize the distribution of OT peptide in the brain of two songbird species: canar…
View article: Role of aromatase in distinct brain nuclei of the social behaviour network in the expression of sexual behaviour in male Japanese quail
Role of aromatase in distinct brain nuclei of the social behaviour network in the expression of sexual behaviour in male Japanese quail Open
In male Japanese quail, brain aromatase is crucial for the hormonal activation of sexual behaviour, but the sites producing neuro‐oestrogens that are critical for these behaviours have not been completely identified. This study examined th…
View article: Perineuronal nets in HVC and plasticity in male canary song
Perineuronal nets in HVC and plasticity in male canary song Open
Songbirds learn their vocalizations during developmental sensitive periods of song memorization and sensorimotor learning. Some seasonal songbirds, called open-ended learners, recapitulate transitions from sensorimotor learning and song cr…