cDNA microarray analyses on the gene expression in the pituitary glands under the physiological and experimental conditions.

垂体位于下丘脑-垂体-性腺轴的中心，协同调节生殖功能。垂体促性腺激素通过分泌LH和FSH两种促性腺激素调节性腺功能，其功能状态又受下丘脑和性腺因素的影响。为了描述这些对垂体影响的分子基础，我们利用cDNA芯片同时分析了生理和实验条件下大鼠垂体和肾上腺中11,505个基因的表达水平。首先，我们发现垂体中的112个基因和肾上腺中的87个基因的表达水平存在显著的性别相关差异。有趣的是，在上述鉴定的112个垂体基因中，只有4个基因在肾上腺中同时表现出显著的性别相关差异，这表明性别相关差异的分子基础取决于不同的组织/细胞。这些与性别相关的基因表达差异在阉割（雄性切除睾丸，雌性切除卵巢）后显著降低，表明性腺因素在这两个器官性别相关差异的建立中起着关键作用。然而，雄激素和雌激素对这两个内分泌器官的基因表达调控不同；去势后，经雌二醇处理后，上述112个基因中约四分之三在垂体中的表达水平出现显著波动，与所观察到的性别相关差异一致，而经睾酮处理后，上述87个基因中有五分之四在肾上腺中出现显著波动。这些分析首先阐明了垂体和肾上腺这两个代表性器官性别相关差异的分子基础。基于这些发现，迄今为止尚未分类的基因产物可以被确定为在下丘脑-垂体-性腺轴中具有重要功能的分子。少

The pituitary gland is situated in the center of hypothalamic-pituitray-gonadal axis that cooperatively regulates the reproductive functions. Pituitary gonadotropes regulate the gonadal function by secreting two gonadotropins, LH and FSH, and in turn, their functional states are influenced by the hypothalamic and gonadal factors. To describe the molecular basis of these influences on the pituitary gland, we analyzed simultaneously the expression levels of 11,505 genes in the rat pituitary and adrenal glands under the physiological and experimental conditions by using a cDNA microarray.First, we found significant sex-related differences in the expression levels of 112 genes in the pituitary and 87 genes in the adrenal glands. Interestingly, only 4 genes of the 112 genes identified above in the pituitary exhibited simultaneously a significant sex-related difference in the expression in the adrenal, suggesting that the molecular basis for the sex-related differences varies depending on th … More e tissues/cells. These sex-related differences in the gene expression are significantly reduced after castration (orchiectomy for male, and ovariectomy for female rats), indicating that the gonadal factors play a pivotal role in the establishment of sex-related differeneces in these two organs. However, the gene expression of these two endocrine organs were differently regulated by androgens and estrogens ; the expression levels of about three fourths of the 112 genes identified above in the pituitary were significantly fluctuated by estradiol treatment after castration in correspondence with the sex-related difference observed, while those of four fifths of the 87 genes identified above in the adrenal were significantly fluctuated by testosterone treatment.These analyses first clarified the molecular basis of sex-related differences in the two representative organs, pituitary and adrenal glands. Based on these findings, the gene products that have not been classified so far could be identified as a molecule with a significant function in the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis. Less