Estrogen regulation of mu-opioid receptor mRNA in the forebrain of female rats.
Previous studies have suggested that opioids play a role in the regulation of reproductive behaviors in the female rat. The present study examined whether estrogen treatment alters mu-opioid receptor mRNA levels in different areas of the forebrain of ovariectomized (OVX) female rats using the in situ hybridization technique. We observed an increase in mu-opioid receptor mRNA levels in the ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus (VMH) and arcuate nucleus (ARN) after 48 h of 10 microg of 17-beta-estradiol-3-benzoate treatment when compared to OVX females. No effects of estrogen were observed on mu-opioid receptor mRNA levels in the posterior medial nucleus of the amygdala (MeAmyg), hippocampus, caudate-putamen (CPu) or the medial habenula. Our result suggests that the estrogenic regulation of mu-opioid receptor in the CNS may in part be mediated by de novo synthesis and/or stability of the mu-opioid receptor message.
Quiñones-Jenab
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Laboratory of Neurobiology and Behavior, Rockefeller University, New York, NY 10021, USA.
Jenab
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S
Ogawa
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S
Inturrisi
C
C
Pfaff
D W
DW
D000818:Animals; D004967:Estrogens / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005260:Female; D017403:In Situ Hybridization; D010052:Ovariectomy; D016548:Prosencephalon / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D017450:Receptors, Opioid, mu / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism
D004967:Estrogens; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D017450:Receptors, Opioid, mu