Gonadal Hormone Involvement in Brain Activity

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9514888 Becker The gonadal steroid hormones have long been known to influence female behaviors. However, the mechanism by which these hormones generate their behavioral effects is largely unknown. There are data that do not conform to the classical mechanism for steroid hormone action, i.e. binding of hormone to intracellular receptors and subsequently altering nuclear gene transcription. Consequently, novel non-genomic effects have been postulated by investigators, including Dr. Becker, to resolve the temporal inconsistencies between the behavioral observations and the time required to alter gene transcription. The present research goes beyond this level to explore the non-genomic effects of the steroid hormones in specific brain regions and investigates the ability of steroid hormones to influence dopaminergic neuronal activity in the striatum and accumbens, and how this classical neurotransmitter acts in these areas to modulate female behavior. Moreover, other investigator have shown a strong interaction between striatal dopamine and gamma-aminobutyric acid in controlling movement. Logically, Dr. Becker will investigate how estrogen alters the activity of the neurons containing these neurotransmitters and the direct consequences on female behavior which is dependent on movement. These studies are exciting and highly innovative. They will revolutionize the thinking about female behaviors and the components required for their generation. Investigating the interaction of dopamine-and gamma-aminobutyric acid-containing neurons in the striatum may open new avenues for understanding presynaptic regulatory mechanisms in the brain, which will impact not only the neuroendocrinology field, but may also reveal more about the behavior of animals in their natural habitats and the critical cues that trigger female behaviors.