Female feathering in sebright cocks is due to conversion of testosterone to estradiol in skin

Fredrick W. George, Janet F. Noble, Jean D. Wilson

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

22 Scopus citations

Abstract

Sebright cocks develop a female feathering pattern but revert to normal male feathering after castration. Administration of testosterone to castrated cocks causes male comb development and reappearance of female feathering. Dihydrotestosterone treatment supports development of a male comb but does not induce female feathering. Since testosterone but not dihydrotestosterone is converted to estradiol in the skin of the Sebright, the female feathering appears to be the result of increased conversion of testosterone to estradiol.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)557-559
Number of pages3
JournalScience
Volume213
Issue number4507
DOIs
StatePublished - 1981

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Female feathering in sebright cocks is due to conversion of testosterone to estradiol in skin'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this