The Cerebral Cortex as a Target of Estrogen

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Appropriate development and maintenance of the connections and metabolism of neurons are necessary requisites to all functions of the nervous system, including the processes of learning and memory and other cognitive abilities. Knowledge of the substances that regulate these processes in mature neurons and during development is limited. However, two classes that have been implicated in the development, survival, and regeneration of neurons in cerebral cortex, the brain region involved cognitive functions, are the steroid hormone, estradiol, and the locally-synthesized growth- and survival-promoting protein, nerve growth factor (NGF). Indeed, Dr. Toran-Allerand has demonstrated that neurons of cerebral cortex contain receptors for both estrogen and NGF. She will now investigate in parallel the developmental history of the co-expressed estrogen and NGF receptor systems in vivo and analyze the cellular and molecular consequences of estrogen/NGF interactions in vitro. The results of this work will provide insights into those factors that may be of importance to the development of brain regions which underlie cognitive functions. Moreover, the basic information gained from this work may ultimately provide a biological rationale for clinical investigations into possible therapeutic approaches involving both estrogen and NGF in Alzheimer's disease and related disorders of cognition.