| Autor: |
P D, Finn, M J, Cunningham, K Y, Pau, H G, Spies, D K, Clifton, R A, Steiner |
| Rok vydání: |
1998 |
| Předmět: |
|
| Zdroj: |
Endocrinology. 139(11) |
| ISSN: |
0013-7227 |
| Popis: |
Leptin acts as a metabolic activator of the neuroendocrine reproductive axis in several rodent species, but whether leptin plays a similar role in primates is unknown. To explore this question, we examined the effects of leptin on gonadotropin and testosterone secretion in male rhesus monkeys that were fasted for 2 days. Mean plasma levels of LH and FSH, LH pulse frequency, and LH pulse amplitude were significantly higher in leptin-treated animals compared with saline-treated controls during the second day of the fast. To identify targets for leptin's action, we used in situ hybridization and computerized imaging to map leptin receptor (Ob-R) messenger RNA (mRNA) distribution. Ob-R mRNA was observed in the anterior pituitary and several areas of the brain, including the arcuate and ventromedial nuclei of the hypothalamus. Ob-R mRNA was coexpressed in both POMC and neuropeptide Y neurons in the arcuate nucleus, whereas little or no coexpression of Ob-R mRNA was evident in GnRH neurons. These results suggest that leptin is a metabolic signal to the reproductive axis in primates and imply that both POMC and neuropeptide Y neurons are involved in mediating leptin's effects in the brain. |
| Databáze: |
OpenAIRE |
| Externí odkaz: |
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