title: Role for acetylcholine in mediating effects of light on reproduction.
abstract: The length of day, or photoperiod, regulates the annual cycle of reproductive activity in the golden hamster. The inhibitory effects of a short-day photoperiod on testicular function were prevented by nighttime, but not daytime, intraventricular injections of carbachol, a cholinergic agonist. Short pulses of light during the night also block short-day induced testicular regression. The findings suggest that acetylcholine may play an important role in the mechanism through which information about the light-dark environment is transferred to the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis.
mesh_terms: D000109:Acetylcholine / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D002217:Carbachol / Q000494:pharmacology; D006224:Cricetinae; D008027:Light; D008297:Male; D008647:Mesocricetus; D012098:Reproduction; D013737:Testis / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D002217:Carbachol; D000109:Acetylcholine