title: Expression of estrogen receptors α and β in the trigeminal mesencephalic nucleus of adult women and men.
abstract: Temporomandibular disorders are more prevalent in women than in men and phases of pain relate to the estrous cycle. Several studies described the location of estrogen receptors (ER) in the temporomandibular joint (TMJ), the masseteric muscles and cartilage, but it was unknown whether they are also expressed within the pseudounipolar neurons of the trigeminal mesencephalic nucleus, which receives direct sensory inputs from these structures. Therefore, we studied expression of ERα and ERβ protein in the trigeminal mesencephalic nucleus of ten human brains (five female/five male). Both receptors were uniformly expressed on neurons, but not other cell types within the target structure. Thus, sensory inputs from the TMJ and adjacent structures are likely to be modulated by estrogen at the level of the first sensory neuron which may underlie the well-known correlation of pain incidence and phases of the estrous cycle.
authors: Institute of Anatomy, University of Leipzig, Germany.
authors: Tahmina
authors: T
authors: Alimy-Allrath
authors: Institute of Anatomy, University of Leipzig, Germany. Electronic address: albert.ricken@medizin.uni-leipzig.de.
authors: Albert
authors: A
authors: Ricken
authors: Institute of Anatomy, University of Leipzig, Germany.
authors: Ingo
authors: I
authors: Bechmann
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D047628:Estrogen Receptor alpha / Q000378:metabolism*; D047629:Estrogen Receptor beta / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011984:Sensory Receptor Cells / Q000378:metabolism*; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D013681:Tegmentum Mesencephali / Q000378:metabolism*; D013704:Temporomandibular Joint / Q000294:innervation*; D014018:Tissue Distribution
chemical_list: D047628:Estrogen Receptor alpha; D047629:Estrogen Receptor beta