| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
Kastor Neurobiology of Aging Laboratories, Fishberg Research Center for Neurobiology, and Brookdale Department of Geriatrics and Adult Development, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, New York 10029
Address all correspondence and requests for reprints to: Andrea C. Gore, Ph.D., Pharmacology/Toxicology A1915, University of Texas, Austin, Texas 78712. E-mail: andrea.gore{at}mail.utexas.edu.
Although the estrogen receptor ß (ERß) is a major target for actions of estrogen on the brain, little is known about its neural expression during aging, when levels and the mode of estrogen release undergo substantial changes. Therefore, in the present study we examined effects of aging and estrogen treatment on the number of cells expressing the ERß in female rats. Two regions relevant to reproductive function were analyzed: the anteroventral periventricular nucleus (AVPV) and the principal nucleus of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (pBST). The numbers of ERß-expressing cells were quantified using an unbiased stereological approach. Female rats were used at three ages [young (3–4 months), middle-aged (10–12 months), and old (24–26 months)], with or without estrogen replacement. Because the estrogen milieu impacts the function of neurotransmitter receptors such as the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor in the brain, we also investigated the colocalization of ERß and the obligatory N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor subunit, NR1. We observed a significant age-related decrease in ERß cell number in the AVPV, but not the pBST. No significant effect of estrogen on ERß cell number was detected in either brain region at any age. Approximately 10% and 3% of cells expressing ERß also coexpressed NR1 in AVPV and pBST, respectively, and this did not differ with age or treatment. Taken together, our results demonstrate 1) there are age-related changes in ERß cell number that are region specific; 2) this expression is not altered by estrogen replacement; and 3) a subset of ERß-positive cells coexpresses NR1.
This article has been cited by other articles:
 |
|
 |
|
  M. Schumacher, R. Guennoun, A. Ghoumari, C. Massaad, F. Robert, M. El-Etr, Y. Akwa, K. Rajkowski, and E.-E. Baulieu Novel Perspectives for Progesterone in Hormone Replacement Therapy, with Special Reference to the Nervous System Endocr. Rev., June 1, 2007; 28(4): 387 - 439. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 W. Zheng, M. Jimenez-Linan, B. S. Rubin, and L. M. Halvorson Anterior Pituitary Gene Expression with Reproductive Aging in the Female Rat Biol Reprod, June 1, 2007; 76(6): 1091 - 1102. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 J. H. Morrison, R. D. Brinton, P. J. Schmidt, and A. C. Gore Estrogen, Menopause, and the Aging Brain: How Basic Neuroscience Can Inform Hormone Therapy in Women J. Neurosci., October 11, 2006; 26(41): 10332 - 10348. [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 T. R. Chakraborty, G. Rajendren, and A. C. Gore Expression of Estrogen Receptor {alpha} in the Anteroventral Periventricular Nucleus of Hypogonadal Mice Experimental Biology and Medicine, January 1, 2005; 230(1): 49 - 56. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 G. Weiss, J. H. Skurnick, L. T. Goldsmith, N. F. Santoro, and S. J. Park Menopause and Hypothalamic-Pituitary Sensitivity to Estrogen JAMA, December 22, 2004; 292(24): 2991 - 2996. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
T. R. Chakraborty and A. C. Gore Aging-Related Changes in Ovarian Hormones, Their Receptors, and Neuroendocrine Function Experimental Biology and Medicine, November 1, 2004; 229(10): 977 - 987. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
| Endocrinology | Endocrine Reviews | J. Clin. End. & Metab. |
| Molecular Endocrinology | Recent Prog. Horm. Res. | All Endocrine Journals |
