TLDR Finasteride slows down motherly behavior in first-time pregnant rats.
The study investigated the effect of finasteride, a drug used to treat hair loss, on maternal behavior in primigravid rats. The results showed that finasteride delayed the onset of maternal behavior and increased anxiety-like behaviors in rats. The study suggests that progesterone plays a role in inhibiting maternal behavior, but it is unknown which specific progesterone receptors are involved. The conversion of progesterone to allopregnanolone is unlikely to underlie progesterone's inhibitory actions on maternal behavior. The study was supported by NIH grants.
36 citations
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July 2005 in “Journal of Neuroendocrinology” Blocking certain brain processes reduces mating behavior in female rats.
21 citations
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February 2005 in “Epilepsy & Behavior” 180 citations
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June 2004 in “Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics” Progesterone's seizure-reducing effects are mainly due to allopregnanolone, not progesterone receptors.
269 citations
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May 2002 in “Hormones and Behavior” Lowering 3α,5α-THP in the hippocampus increases anxiety and depression in proestrous rats.
19 citations
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April 2017 in “Synapse” Blocking allopregnanolone production in mice makes them more anxious after stress, but this can be reversed with a drug that mimics allopregnanolone.
27 citations
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April 2007 in “European Journal of Pharmacology” 
26 citations
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November 2006 in “Pharmacology, Biochemistry and Behavior” Pregnancy reduces anxiety in rats, but finasteride reverses this effect.
19 citations
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June 2006 in “Physiology & Behavior” Finasteride slows down motherly behavior in first-time pregnant rats.
151 citations
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December 2004 in “Neuropharmacology” Progesterone reduces anxiety without needing progesterone receptors.
