Gonadal Hormone Influences on Brain Activity

性腺激素影响大脑活动

• 批准号: 9816673
• 负责人: Jill Becker
• 金额: $ 25.5万
• 依托单位: Regents of the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 1999
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 1999-04-01 至 2003-03-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=9816673&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Gonadal; Hormone; Influences; Brain; Activity

In female rats, the gonadal hormones estrogen and progesterone modulate activity of the neurotransmitter, dopamine (DA), in the brain. Experiments in this laboratory have been directed at defining the mechanisms mediating the effect of estrogen in the brain, as well as attempting to determine the functional role of this phenomena in the natural behavior of the rat. With the latter in mind, we find that DA in one particular area of the brain, the striatum, is important for specific aspects of the female rat reproductive behavior. The mechanism(s) mediating the effects of the gonadal hormones on the striatum appears to be different from those mediating the effects of estrogen and progesterone at intracellular (traditional) estrogen receptors. Research from my laboratory has repeatedly demonstrated that estrogen acts in the striatum through a novel mechanism. There are two key questions about the role of gonadal hormones in the modulation of DA activity in the female rat that the experiments in this proposal will address: 1) What are the mechanism(s) mediating the effects of estrogen on the striatum?; and 2) What role(s) of the striatum, and of DA release, in reproductive behavior in the female rat?The involvement of the gonadal steroid hormones in the modulation of striatal DA activity is important for our understanding of the basic processes of neuroendocrinology as well as our understanding of the functions of the basal ganglia. Identifying novel mechanisms through which steroid hormones act in the brain has important implications for our understanding of where, how, and when these hormones affect the brain activity and behavior. Finally, these experiments will help us to understand how these hormones modulate behavior in the female rat.

在雌性大鼠中，性腺激素雌激素和孕激素调节大脑中神经递质多巴胺（DA）的活性。本实验室的实验旨在确定雌性激素在大脑中的作用机制，并试图确定这种现象在大鼠自然行为中的功能作用。考虑到后者，我们发现DA在大脑的一个特定区域，纹状体，对雌性大鼠生殖行为的特定方面很重要。性腺激素对纹状体的作用机制与雌激素和孕激素对细胞内（传统）雌激素受体的作用机制不同。我实验室的研究反复证明，雌激素通过一种新的机制在纹状体中起作用。关于性激素在调节雌性大鼠DA活性中的作用，本实验将解决两个关键问题：1)雌激素对纹状体影响的机制是什么？2)纹状体和DA的释放在雌性大鼠的生殖行为中起什么作用？性腺类固醇激素参与纹状体DA活性的调节对于我们理解神经内分泌学的基本过程以及我们对基底神经节功能的理解是重要的。确定类固醇激素在大脑中起作用的新机制对我们理解这些激素在哪里、如何以及何时影响大脑活动和行为具有重要意义。最后，这些实验将帮助我们了解这些激素如何调节雌性大鼠的行为。