BIOGENIC-AMINES AND AGGRESSION - EXPERIMENTAL APPROACHES IN CRUSTACEANS

This review summarizes om experimental approaches attempting to link a mines and their metabolites to aggression in crustaceans. The results demonstrate (i) that agonistic behavior in crustaceans can be quantifi ed, (ii) that the amines themselves have telling and subtle effects on the fighting behavior of animals, (iii) that pharmacological interven tions are possible that might allow a biochemical dissection of the un derlying mechanisms involved in processes like decision making in thes e animals, and (iv) that selective metabolites of amines are excreted in the urine of lobsters where they may serve behavioral roles. Many o f the studies presented here are preliminary. Nonetheless, we believe the results are provocative and nicely complement previous detailed ph ysiological, morphological and biochemical studies exploring the roles of amines in aggression in crustaceans. We expect that the continued use of this invertebrate model system will allow us to gain considerab le insight into, and understanding of, the role served by biogenic ami nes in a complex behavioral process like aggression.