The preoptic area is responsible for thermoregulation and receives nervous stimulation from thermoreceptors in the skin, mucous membranes, and hypothalamus itself.

In rats, oxytocin and vasopressin are associated with maintaining maternal care through local release in the mPOA and the adjacent bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST).

[4] Additionally, the mPOA is critical for the onset and expression of parental behavior, as evidenced by increases in the immediate early gene c-fos, in experienced rat mothers or fathers when compared to controls.

[5] Large lesions of the mPOA disrupt the onset of maternal behavior, nest-building, and pup retrieval, with the lateral projections being especially critical.

[7] Appetitive behaviors of female rats – including hops, darts, and solicitations – have been linked to dopamine (DA) transmission in the mPOA.

[9] Conversely, electrical stimulation of this area triggers male copulatory behavior, as measured by decreases in the latency to ejaculate.