STEROID HORMONES, NEUROENDOCRINE FUNCTION AND BEHAVIOR

要进行的研究项目涉及细胞过程， 孕激素和触觉输入来自交配 影响雌性大鼠大脑中对类固醇激素敏感的神经元， 导致发情行为的改变。 发情行为调节 在雌性大鼠中用作模型，因为卵巢类固醇激素， 雌二醇和孕酮具有强大的，可预测的和充分的研究， 雌二醇增加对孕酮的行为反应， 孕酮促进发情行为的表达， 使动物对进一步的反应不敏感。 交配的影响 将研究对胆固醇敏感神经元的刺激，因为 一类外部环境刺激对类固醇激素有强烈的影响， 依赖性的生理和行为事件。 各种 从行为和神经解剖到细胞的方法将被用来 阐明了卵巢类固醇激素调节 大脑，主要使用这种神经调节行为作为模型。 一 将使用各种技术，包括行为观察， 确定特定激素，药理学和 行为操作，免疫细胞化学， 识别含有类固醇激素受体的神经元和/或 对特定的激素、药物或行为治疗有反应，在原位 杂交以检查类固醇激素受体的mRNA水平， 和反义寡核苷酸以选择性地抑制 速发型早期基因的蛋白质产物。

The research projects to be conducted concern the cellular processes by which progesterone and afferent tactile input derived from mating influence steroid hormone-sensitive neurons in the brains of female rats, resulting in changes in estrous behaviors. Regulation of estrous behavior in female rats is used as a model, because the ovarian steroid hormones, estradiol and progesterone have robust, predictable and well-studied interactions; estradiol increases behavioral response to progesterone, and progesterone facilitates the expression of estrous behaviors, and it then desensitizes the animal to further response. The effects of mating stimulation on progesterone-sensitive neurons will be studied, as this class of external environmental stimulation has robust effects on steroid hormone-dependent physiological and behavioral events. A variety of approaches from behavioral and neuroanatomical to cellular will be used to clarify the processes by which ovarian steroid hormones regulate the brain, primarily using this hormonally-regulated behavior as a model. A variety of techniques will be used including behavioral observation to determine the effects of particular hormonal, pharmacological and behavioral manipulations on this system, immunocytochemistry for identifying neurons containing steroid hormone receptors and/or that are responsive to particular hormonal, drug or behavioral treatments, in situ hybridization to examine mRNA levels for the steroid hormone receptors, and antisense oligonucleotides to inhibit selectively synthesis of progestin receptors and protein products of immediate early genes.