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Witt ST, Brown A, Gravelsins L, Engström M, Classon E, Lykke N, Åvall-Lundqvist E, Theodorsson E, Ernerudh J, Kjölhede P, Einstein G. Gray matter volume in women with the BRCA mutation with and without ovarian removal: evidence for increased risk of late-life Alzheimer's disease or dementia. Menopause 2024; 31:608-616. [PMID: 38688467 DOI: 10.1097/gme.0000000000002361] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/02/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Ovarian removal prior to spontaneous/natural menopause (SM) is associated with increased risk of late life dementias including Alzheimer's disease. This increased risk may be related to the sudden and early loss of endogenous estradiol. Women with breast cancer gene mutations (BRCAm) are counseled to undergo oophorectomy prior to SM to significantly reduce their risk of developing breast, ovarian, and cervical cancers. There is limited evidence of the neurological effects of ovarian removal prior to the age of SM showing women without the BRCAm had cortical thinning in medial temporal lobe structures. A second study in women with BRCAm and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (BSO) noted changes in cognition. METHODS The present, cross-sectional study examined whole-brain differences in gray matter (GM) volume using high-resolution, quantitative magnetic resonance imaging in women with BRCAm and intact ovaries (BRCA-preBSO [study cohort with BRCA mutation prior to oophorectomy]; n = 9) and after surgery with (BSO + estradiol-based therapy [ERT]; n = 10) and without (BSO; n = 10) postsurgical estradiol hormone therapy compared with age-matched women (age-matched controls; n = 10) with their ovaries. RESULTS The BRCA-preBSO and BSO groups showed significantly lower GM volume in the left medial temporal and frontal lobe structures. BSO + ERT exhibited few areas of lower GM volume compared with age-matched controls. Novel to this study, we also observed that all three BRCAm groups exhibited significantly higher GM volume compared with age-matched controls, suggesting continued plasticity. CONCLUSIONS The present study provides evidence, through lower GM volume, to support both the possibility that the BRCAm, alone, and early life BSO may play a role in increasing the risk for late-life dementia. At least for BRCAm with BSO, postsurgical ERT seems to ameliorate GM losses.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Alana Brown
- Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | | | | | - Elisabet Classon
- Department of Acute Internal Medicine and Geriatrics, and Department of Health, Medicine and Caring Sciences, Division of Prevention, Rehabilitation and Community Medicine, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden
| | - Nina Lykke
- Thematic Studies, Linköping University, Sweden
| | - Elisabeth Åvall-Lundqvist
- Department of Oncology in Linköping and Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden
| | - Elvar Theodorsson
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden
| | - Jan Ernerudh
- Department of Clinical Immunology and Transfusion Medicine, and Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences, Linköping University, Sweden
| | - Preben Kjölhede
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden
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Sato K, Takayama KI, Inoue S. Expression and function of estrogen receptors and estrogen-related receptors in the brain and their association with Alzheimer's disease. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne) 2023; 14:1220150. [PMID: 37469978 PMCID: PMC10352578 DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2023.1220150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2023] [Accepted: 06/20/2023] [Indexed: 07/21/2023] Open
Abstract
While estrogens are well known for their pivotal role in the female reproductive system, they also play a crucial function in regulating physiological processes associated with learning and memory in the brain. Moreover, they have neuroprotective effects in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Importantly, AD has a higher incidence in older and postmenopausal women than in men, and estrogen treatment might reduce the risk of AD in these women. In general, estrogens bind to and activate estrogen receptors (ERs)-mediated transcriptional machineries, and also stimulate signal transduction through membrane ERs (mERs). Estrogen-related receptors (ERRs), which share homologous sequences with ERs but lack estrogen-binding capabilities, are widely and highly expressed in the human brain and have also been implicated in AD pathogenesis. In this review, we primarily provide a summary of ER and ERR expression patterns in the human brain. In addition, we summarize recent studies on their role in learning and memory. We then review and discuss research that has elucidated the functions and importance of ERs and ERRs in AD pathogenesis, including their role in Aβ clearance and the reduction of phosphorylated tau levels. Elucidation of the mechanisms underlying ER- and ERR-mediated transcriptional machineries and their functions in healthy and diseased brains would provide new perspectives for the diagnosis and treatment of AD. Furthermore, exploring the potential role of estrogens and their receptors, ERs, in AD will facilitate a better understanding of the sex differences observed in AD, and lead to novel sex-specific therapeutic approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kaoru Sato
- Department of Systems Aging Science and Medicine, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute for Geriatrics and Gerontology (TMIG), Tokyo, Japan
- Integrated Research Initiative for Living Well with Dementia (IRIDE), TMIG, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Ken-ichi Takayama
- Department of Systems Aging Science and Medicine, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute for Geriatrics and Gerontology (TMIG), Tokyo, Japan
| | - Satoshi Inoue
- Department of Systems Aging Science and Medicine, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute for Geriatrics and Gerontology (TMIG), Tokyo, Japan
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3
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Wright CJ, Milosavljevic S, Pocivavsek A. The stress of losing sleep: Sex-specific neurobiological outcomes. Neurobiol Stress 2023; 24:100543. [PMID: 37252645 PMCID: PMC10209346 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2023.100543] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2023] [Revised: 03/20/2023] [Accepted: 05/06/2023] [Indexed: 05/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Sleep is a vital and evolutionarily conserved process, critical to daily functioning and homeostatic balance. Losing sleep is inherently stressful and leads to numerous detrimental physiological outcomes. Despite sleep disturbances affecting everyone, women and female rodents are often excluded or underrepresented in clinical and pre-clinical studies. Advancing our understanding of the role of biological sex in the responses to sleep loss stands to greatly improve our ability to understand and treat health consequences of insufficient sleep. As such, this review discusses sex differences in response to sleep deprivation, with a focus on the sympathetic nervous system stress response and activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. We review sex differences in several stress-related consequences of sleep loss, including inflammation, learning and memory deficits, and mood related changes. Focusing on women's health, we discuss the effects of sleep deprivation during the peripartum period. In closing, we present neurobiological mechanisms, including the contribution of sex hormones, orexins, circadian timing systems, and astrocytic neuromodulation, that may underlie potential sex differences in sleep deprivation responses.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Ana Pocivavsek
- Corresponding author. Pharmacology, Physiology, and Neuroscience, USC School of Medicine, Columbia, SC, 29208, USA.
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4
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Kanmogne GD, Fonsah JY, Umlauf A, Moul J, Doh RF, Kengne AM, Tang B, Tagny CT, Nchindap E, Kenmogne L, Franklin D, Njamnshi DM, Kuate CT, Mbanya D, Njamnshi AK, Heaton RK. Effects of HIV infection, antiretroviral therapy, and immune status on the speed of information processing and complex motor functions in adult Cameroonians. Sci Rep 2020; 10:14016. [PMID: 32820234 PMCID: PMC7441321 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-70981-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2020] [Accepted: 07/28/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
HIV-associated neurocognitive deficits include impaired speed-of-information processing (SIP) and motor functions. There is lack of Cameroonian adult norms for assessing SIP or motor functions. This study of 683 Cameroonians (320 HIV+, 363 HIV-) establishes demographically-adjusted norms for six SIP [Wechsler-Adult-Intelligence-Scale (WAIS)-III Digit Symbol (WAIS-IIIDS) and Symbol Search (WAIS-IIISS), Stroop Color-Naming, Stroop Word-Reading, Trail-Making Test-A (TMT-A), Color Trails-1 (CTT1)], and two motor function [Grooved Pegboard-dominant (GP-DH) and non-dominant (GP-NDH) hands] tests. We assessed viral effects on SIP and motor functions. HIV-infected persons had significantly lower (worse) T scores on GP-DH, WAIS-IIIDS, Stroop Word-Reading, TMT-A; lower motor and SIP summary T scores. Significantly higher proportion of cases (20.7%) than controls (10.3%) had impaired SIP. Male cases had better T scores than female cases on GP-NDH, WAIS-IIIDS, WAIS-IIISS, TMT-A, CTT1; better SIP summary T scores. Antiretroviral therapy (ART) was associated with significantly better T scores on GP-NDH, WAIS-IIIDS, Stroop Color-Naming; better motor and SIP summary T scores. Cases with higher CD4 had better T scores on WAIS-IIIDS, TMT-A, CTT1; better SIP summary T scores. Overall, we demonstrate that HIV infection in Cameroon is associated with deficits in SIP and motor functions; ART and higher CD4 are associated with better cognitive performance. We provide SIP and psychomotor functions normative standards, which will be useful for neurobehavioral studies in Cameroon of diseases affecting the brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Georgette D Kanmogne
- Vice-Chair for Resource Allocation and Faculty Development, Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience, College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, 68198-5800, USA.
| | - Julius Y Fonsah
- Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Yaoundé I, Yaoundé, Cameroon
- Department of Neurology, Yaoundé Central Hospital/Brain Research Africa Initiative (BRAIN), Yaoundé, Cameroon
| | - Anya Umlauf
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA, 92093, USA
| | - Jacob Moul
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA, 92093, USA
| | - Roland F Doh
- Department of Neurology, Yaoundé Central Hospital/Brain Research Africa Initiative (BRAIN), Yaoundé, Cameroon
| | - Anne M Kengne
- Department of Neurology, Yaoundé Central Hospital/Brain Research Africa Initiative (BRAIN), Yaoundé, Cameroon
| | - Bin Tang
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA, 92093, USA
| | - Claude T Tagny
- Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Yaoundé I, Yaoundé, Cameroon
- Yaoundé University Teaching Hospital, Yaoundé, Cameroon
| | | | | | - Donald Franklin
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA, 92093, USA
| | - Dora M Njamnshi
- HIV-Day Care Service, Yaoundé Central Hospital, Yaoundé, Cameroon
| | - Callixte T Kuate
- Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Yaoundé I, Yaoundé, Cameroon
- Department of Neurology, Laquintinie Hospital, Douala, Cameroon
| | - Dora Mbanya
- Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Yaoundé I, Yaoundé, Cameroon
- Yaoundé University Teaching Hospital, Yaoundé, Cameroon
| | - Alfred K Njamnshi
- Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Yaoundé I, Yaoundé, Cameroon
- Department of Neurology, Yaoundé Central Hospital/Brain Research Africa Initiative (BRAIN), Yaoundé, Cameroon
| | - Robert K Heaton
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA, 92093, USA
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Casaletto K, Lindbergh C, Memel M, Staffaroni A, Elahi F, Weiner-Light S, You M, Fonseca C, Karydas A, Jacobs E, Dubal D, Yaffe K, Kramer J. Sexual dimorphism of physical activity on cognitive aging: Role of immune functioning. Brain Behav Immun 2020; 88:699-710. [PMID: 32387511 PMCID: PMC7416443 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2020.05.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2020] [Revised: 05/04/2020] [Accepted: 05/04/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Exercise is one of the most potent strategies available to support cognitive health with age, yet substantial variability exists. Sexual dimorphism is evident for brain and immune functioning, the latter being implicated as important pathway for exercise. We examined the moderating role of sex on the relationship between physical activity and systemic inflammatory and brain health outcomes in support of more personalized approaches to behavioral interventions. METHODS Our discovery cohort included 45 typically aging women matched on age (±5y) and education (±2y) to 45 men (mean age = 72.5; Clinical Dementia Rating = 0) who completed self-reported current physical activity (Physical Activity Scale for Elderly), blood draw, neuropsychological evaluation, and brain MRI. An independent sample of 45 typically aging women and 36 men who completed the same measures comprised a replication cohort. Plasma was analyzed for 11 proinflammatory cytokine and chemokine markers via MesoScale Discovery. RESULTS Discovery cohort: Reported physical activity did not differ between sexes (150 vs. 157, p = 0.72). There was a significant interaction between sex and physical activity on chemokine markers MDC, MIP-1b, MCP-4, and eotaxin-3 (ps < 0.03), with a similar trend for MCP-1 and INFγ (ps < 0.09). Men who reported greater activity demonstrated lower inflammatory markers, an effect attenuated-to-absent in women. An interaction between sex and physical activity was also observed for parahippocampal volumes (p = 0.02) and cognition (processing speed and visual memory; ps < 0.04). Again, the beneficial effect of physical activity on outcomes was present in men, but not women. Replication cohort analyses conferred a consistent effect of sex on the relationship between physical activity and immune markers; models examining neurobehavioral outcomes did not strongly replicate. Across cohorts, post-hoc models demonstrated an interaction between sex and activity-related inflammatory markers on total gray matter volume and visual memory. Men with higher inflammatory markers demonstrated poorer brain structure and function, whereas inflammatory markers did not strongly relate to neurobehavioral outcomes in women. CONCLUSIONS Greater physical activity was associated with lower markers of inflammation in clinically normal older men, but not women - an effect consistently replicated across cohorts. Additionally, men appeared disproportionately vulnerable to the adverse effects of peripheral inflammatory markers on brain structure and function compared to women. Immune activation may be a male-specific pathway through which exercise confers neurobehavioral benefit.
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Affiliation(s)
- K.B. Casaletto
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco,Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, Santa Barbara
| | - C. Lindbergh
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco,Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, Santa Barbara
| | - M. Memel
- San Francisco Veteran’s Affairs Medical Center, University of California, Santa Barbara
| | - A. Staffaroni
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco,Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, Santa Barbara
| | - F. Elahi
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco,Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, Santa Barbara
| | - S. Weiner-Light
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco,Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, Santa Barbara
| | - M. You
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco,Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, Santa Barbara
| | - C. Fonseca
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco,Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, Santa Barbara
| | - A. Karydas
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco,Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, Santa Barbara
| | - E. Jacobs
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara
| | - D.B. Dubal
- Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, Santa Barbara
| | - K. Yaffe
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco,Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, Santa Barbara,Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Francisco
| | - J.H. Kramer
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco,Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, Santa Barbara
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Arrieta-Cruz I, Librado-Osorio R, Flores A, Mendoza-Garcés L, Chavira R, Cárdenas M, Gutiérrez-Juárez R, Domínguez R, Cruz ME. Estrogen Receptors Alpha and Beta in POA-AHA Region Regulate Asymmetrically Ovulation. Cell Mol Neurobiol 2019; 39:1139-1149. [PMID: 31250245 DOI: 10.1007/s10571-019-00708-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2019] [Accepted: 06/18/2019] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
We examined the role of the estrogen receptors alpha (ERα) and beta (ERβ) in of the preoptic-anterior hypothalamic area (POA-AHA) in the regulation of ovulation in rats. The number of ERα- and ERβ-immunoreactive (-ir) cells was determined at 09:00, 13:00, and 17:00 h of each stage of the estrous cycle in intact rats. Additionally, the effects of blocking ERα and ERβ on ovulation rate at 09:00 h on diestrus-2 or proestrus day through the microinjection of methyl-piperidino-pyrazole (MPP) or cyclofenil in either side of POA-AHA were evaluated. The number of ERα-ir and ERβ-ir cells in POA-AHA varied in each phase of estrous cycle. Either MPP or cyclofenil in the right side of POA-AHA on diestrus-2 day reduced the ovulation rate, while at proestrus day it was decreased in rats treated in either side with MPP, and in those treated with cyclofenil in the left side. MPP or cyclofenil produced a decrease in the surge of luteinizing hormone levels (LH) and an increase in progesterone and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH). Replacement with synthetic luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone in non-ovulating rats treated with MPP or cyclofenil restored ovulation. These results suggest that activation of estrogen receptors on the morning of diestrus-2 and proestrus day asymmetrically regulates ovulation and appropriately regulates the secretion of FSH and progesterone in the morning and afternoon of proestrus day. This ensures that both, the preovulatory secretion of LH and ovulation, occur at the right time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabel Arrieta-Cruz
- Department of Basic Research, National Institute of Geriatrics. Ministry of Health, Periférico Sur no. 2767, Col. San Jerónimo Lídice, La Magdalena Contreras, C.P. 10200, Ciudad De México, Mexico.
| | - Raúl Librado-Osorio
- Department of Basic Research, National Institute of Geriatrics. Ministry of Health, Periférico Sur no. 2767, Col. San Jerónimo Lídice, La Magdalena Contreras, C.P. 10200, Ciudad De México, Mexico
| | - Angélica Flores
- Reproductive Biology Research Unit, Neuroendocrinology Laboratory, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Zaragoza, UNAM, Col. Ejército de Oriente, Campus II, Batalla 5 de mayo s/n esquina, Iztapalapa, Fuerte De Loreto, C.P 09230, Mexico
| | - Luciano Mendoza-Garcés
- Department of Basic Research, National Institute of Geriatrics. Ministry of Health, Periférico Sur no. 2767, Col. San Jerónimo Lídice, La Magdalena Contreras, C.P. 10200, Ciudad De México, Mexico
| | - Roberto Chavira
- Department of Reproductive Biology, National Institute of Medical Sciences and Nutrition Salvador Zubirán, Ministry of Health, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Mario Cárdenas
- Department of Reproductive Biology, National Institute of Medical Sciences and Nutrition Salvador Zubirán, Ministry of Health, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Roger Gutiérrez-Juárez
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Medicine, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Zaragoza, UNAM, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Roberto Domínguez
- Reproductive Biology Research Unit, Neuroendocrinology Laboratory, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Zaragoza, UNAM, Col. Ejército de Oriente, Campus II, Batalla 5 de mayo s/n esquina, Iztapalapa, Fuerte De Loreto, C.P 09230, Mexico
| | - María-Esther Cruz
- Reproductive Biology Research Unit, Neuroendocrinology Laboratory, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Zaragoza, UNAM, Col. Ejército de Oriente, Campus II, Batalla 5 de mayo s/n esquina, Iztapalapa, Fuerte De Loreto, C.P 09230, Mexico.
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Abstract
Sleep is a phenomenon in animal behavior as enigmatic as it is ubiquitous, and one deeply tied to endocrine function. Though there are still many unanswered questions about the neurochemical basis of sleep and its functions, extensive interactions have been identified between sleep and the endocrine system, in both the endocrine system's effect on sleep and sleep's effect on the endocrine system. Unfortunately, until recent years, much research on sleep behavior largely disregarded its connections with the endocrine system. Use of both clinical studies and rodent models to investigate interactions between neuroendocrine function, including biological sex, and sleep therefore presents a promising area of further exploration. Further investigation of the neurobiological and neuroendocrine basis of sleep could have wide impact on a number of clinical and basic science fields. In this review, we summarize the state of basic sleep biology and its connections to the field of neuroendocrine biology, as well as suggest key future directions for the neuroendocrine regulation of sleep that may significantly impact new therapies for sleep disorders in women and men.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philip C Smith
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
| | - Jessica A Mong
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
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8
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Martin-Jiménez C, Gaitán-Vaca DM, Areiza N, Echeverria V, Ashraf GM, González J, Sahebkar A, Garcia-Segura LM, Barreto GE. Astrocytes Mediate Protective Actions of Estrogenic Compounds after Traumatic Brain Injury. Neuroendocrinology 2019; 108:142-160. [PMID: 30391959 DOI: 10.1159/000495078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2018] [Accepted: 11/02/2018] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a serious public health problem. It may result in severe neurological disabilities and in a variety of cellular metabolic alterations for which available therapeutic strategies are limited. In the last decade, the use of estrogenic compounds, which activate protective mechanisms in astrocytes, has been explored as a potential experimental therapeutic approach. Previous works have suggested estradiol (E2) as a neuroprotective hormone that acts in the brain by binding to estrogen receptors (ERs). Several steroidal and nonsteroidal estrogenic compounds can imitate the effects of estradiol on ERs. These include hormonal estrogens, phytoestrogens and synthetic estrogens, such as selective ER modulators or tibolone. Current evidence of the role of astrocytes in mediating protective actions of estrogenic compounds after TBI is reviewed in this paper. We conclude that the use of estrogenic compounds to modulate astrocytic properties is a promising therapeutic approach for the treatment of TBI.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cynthia Martin-Jiménez
- Departamento de Nutrición y Bioquímica, Facultad de Ciencias Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Diana Milena Gaitán-Vaca
- Departamento de Nutrición y Bioquímica, Facultad de Ciencias Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Natalia Areiza
- Departamento de Nutrición y Bioquímica, Facultad de Ciencias Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Valentina Echeverria
- Universidad San Sebastián, Fac. Cs de la Salud, Concepción, Chile
- Research and Development Service, Bay Pines VA Healthcare System, Bay Pines, Florida, USA
| | - Ghulam Md Ashraf
- King Fahd Medical Research Center, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
| | - Janneth González
- Departamento de Nutrición y Bioquímica, Facultad de Ciencias Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Amirhossein Sahebkar
- Biotechnology Research Center, Pharmaceutical technology Institute, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
- Neurogenic Inflammation Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
- School of Pharmacy, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
| | - Luis Miguel Garcia-Segura
- Instituto Cajal, CSIC, Madrid, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red Fragilidad y Envejecimiento Saludable (CIBERFES), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain
| | - George E Barreto
- Departamento de Nutrición y Bioquímica, Facultad de Ciencias Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogotá, Colombia,
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9
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Geniole SN, Carré JM. Human social neuroendocrinology: Review of the rapid effects of testosterone. Horm Behav 2018; 104:192-205. [PMID: 29885343 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2018.06.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2018] [Revised: 05/12/2018] [Accepted: 06/02/2018] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Contribution to Special Issue on Fast effects of steroids. It is well documented that testosterone concentrations change rapidly within reproductively relevant contexts (e.g., competition, mate-seeking). It has been argued that such rapid changes in testosterone may serve to adaptively fine-tune ongoing and/or future social behaviour according to one's social environment. In this paper, we review human correlational and experimental evidence suggesting that testosterone fluctuates rapidly in response to competition and mate-seeking cues, and that such acute changes may serve to modulate ongoing and/or future social behaviours (e.g., risk-taking, competitiveness, mate-seeking, and aggression). Some methodological details, which limit interpretation of some of this human work, are also discussed. We conclude with a new integrative model of testosterone secretion and behaviour, the Fitness Model of Testosterone Dynamics. Although we focus primarily on human aggression in this review, we also highlight research on risk-taking, competitiveness, and mate-seeking behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shawn N Geniole
- Department of Basic Psychological Research and Research Methods, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Liebiggasse 5, 1010 Vienna, Austria; Department of Psychology, Nipissing University, 100 College Drive, North Bay, Ontario P1B 8L7, Canada.
| | - Justin M Carré
- Department of Psychology, Nipissing University, 100 College Drive, North Bay, Ontario P1B 8L7, Canada.
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10
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Abstract
INTRODUCTION Sex differences in cognition of HIV positive (HIV) patients are controversial. We aimed to investigate the relationship between cognition, HIV status, and sex, in a highly homogenous cohort of young Romanians parenterally infected during early childhood. METHODS In total, 250 HIV participants were compared with age-matched HIV negative (HIV) controls (n = 72) in a cross-sectional study. After standardized neurocognitive, psychological testing and medical evaluation, linear regression was used to assess the effect of sex and HIV on neurocognitive outcomes. RESULTS Study participants were on average 23 years old with balanced sex distribution (% women = 52% vs. 43%). HIV were more educated (12.7 vs. 11.6 years, P = 0.002).HIV status was associated with a lower global performance (β = -0.22, P < 0.001), after controlling for age and education. HIV women had better previous and current HIV-associated markers. The effect of HIV on global cognition did not differ between sexes in most cognitive domains (β = 0.07, P = 0.14). An interaction between sex, HIV status, and cognitive functioning was found in the psychomotor domain. HIV women had worse motor skills than HIV women (β = -0.32, P < 0.001) suggesting a specific effect of HIV on motor functioning in women only. Moreover, current CD4 less than 200 cells/μl (P = 0.013) and longer time lived with CD4 less than 200 cells/μl (P = 0.023) were negatively correlated with the motor scaled score in women (β = -0.22, P = 0.034). CONCLUSION Despite less advanced disease in women, long-term HIV infection has an equally detrimental effect on cognitive performances of both sexes, in all cognitive domains, except the psychomotor domain where women are preferentially affected.
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Testosterone causes both prosocial and antisocial status-enhancing behaviors in human males. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2016; 113:11633-11638. [PMID: 27671627 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1608085113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 90] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Although popular discussion of testosterone's influence on males often centers on aggression and antisocial behavior, contemporary theorists have proposed that it instead enhances behaviors involved in obtaining and maintaining a high social status. Two central distinguishing but untested predictions of this theory are that testosterone selectively increases status-relevant aggressive behaviors, such as responses to provocation, but that it also promotes nonaggressive behaviors, such as generosity toward others, when they are appropriate for increasing status. Here, we tested these hypotheses in healthy young males by injecting testosterone enanthate or a placebo in a double-blind, between-subjects, randomized design (n = 40). Participants played a version of the Ultimatum Game that was modified so that, having accepted or rejected an offer from the proposer, participants then had the opportunity to punish or reward the proposer at a proportionate cost to themselves. We found that participants treated with testosterone were more likely to punish the proposer and that higher testosterone levels were specifically associated with increased punishment of proposers who made unfair offers, indicating that testosterone indeed potentiates aggressive responses to provocation. Furthermore, when participants administered testosterone received large offers, they were more likely to reward the proposer and also chose rewards of greater magnitude. This increased generosity in the absence of provocation indicates that testosterone can also cause prosocial behaviors that are appropriate for increasing status. These findings are inconsistent with a simple relationship between testosterone and aggression and provide causal evidence for a more complex role for testosterone in driving status-enhancing behaviors in males.
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12
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Schipper HM. The Impact of Gonadal Hormones on the Expression of Human Neurological Disorders. Neuroendocrinology 2016; 103:417-31. [PMID: 26335277 DOI: 10.1159/000440620] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2015] [Accepted: 08/21/2015] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
The effects of gonadal steroids on neurological well-being and disease constitute a rich and rapidly expanding area of basic and clinical neuroscience. Gonadal hormones exert potent effects on monoaminergic, cholinergic and peptidergic pathways as well as neurosteroidogenesis which, in turn, impact normal brain organization and function. A spectrum of human neurological conditions are influenced by hormonal fluctuations associated with the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, the menopause and use of oral contraceptives. An appreciation of these relationships may facilitate the development of specific hormonal and anti-hormonal therapies for neurological disorders as disparate as catamenial epilepsy and acute intermittent porphyria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyman M Schipper
- Lady Davis Institute, Jewish General Hospital; and Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, McGill University, Montreal, Que., Canada
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13
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Goldstein JM, Lancaster K, Longenecker JM, Abbs B, Holsen LM, Cherkerzian S, Whitfield-Gabrieli S, Makris N, Tsuang MT, Buka SL, Seidman LJ, Klibanski A. Sex differences, hormones, and fMRI stress response circuitry deficits in psychoses. Psychiatry Res 2015; 232:226-36. [PMID: 25914141 PMCID: PMC4439265 DOI: 10.1016/j.pscychresns.2015.03.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2014] [Revised: 02/05/2015] [Accepted: 03/23/2015] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Response to stress is dysregulated in psychosis (PSY). fMRI studies showed hyperactivity in hypothalamus (HYPO), hippocampus (HIPP), amygdala (AMYG), anterior cingulate (ACC), orbital and medial prefrontal (OFC; mPFC) cortices, with some studies reporting sex differences. We predicted abnormal steroid hormone levels in PSY would be associated with sex differences in hyperactivity in HYPO, AMYG, and HIPP, and hypoactivity in PFC and ACC, with more severe deficits in men. We studied 32 PSY cases (50.0% women) and 39 controls (43.6% women) using a novel visual stress challenge while collecting blood. PSY males showed BOLD hyperactivity across all hypothesized regions, including HYPO and ACC by FWE-correction. Females showed hyperactivity in HIPP and AMYG and hypoactivity in OFC and mPFC, the latter FWE-corrected. Interaction of group by sex was significant in mPFC (F = 7.00, p = 0.01), with PSY females exhibiting the lowest activity. Male hyperactivity in HYPO and ACC was significantly associated with hypercortisolemia post-stress challenge, and mPFC with low androgens. Steroid hormones and neural activity were dissociated in PSY women. Findings suggest disruptions in neural circuitry-hormone associations in response to stress are sex-dependent in psychosis, particularly in prefrontal cortex.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jill M Goldstein
- Connors Center for Women׳s Health and Gender Biology, Division of Women׳s Health, Brigham and Women׳s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; Departments of Psychiatry and Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Division of Psychiatric Neuroscience, Athinoula A. Martinos Center, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Katie Lancaster
- Connors Center for Women׳s Health and Gender Biology, Division of Women׳s Health, Brigham and Women׳s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Julia M Longenecker
- Connors Center for Women׳s Health and Gender Biology, Division of Women׳s Health, Brigham and Women׳s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Brandon Abbs
- Connors Center for Women׳s Health and Gender Biology, Division of Women׳s Health, Brigham and Women׳s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Laura M Holsen
- Connors Center for Women׳s Health and Gender Biology, Division of Women׳s Health, Brigham and Women׳s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; Departments of Psychiatry and Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Division of Psychiatric Neuroscience, Athinoula A. Martinos Center, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Sara Cherkerzian
- Connors Center for Women׳s Health and Gender Biology, Division of Women׳s Health, Brigham and Women׳s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Susan Whitfield-Gabrieli
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.
| | - Nicolas Makris
- Departments of Psychiatry and Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Division of Psychiatric Neuroscience, Athinoula A. Martinos Center, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Ming T Tsuang
- Center for Behavior Genomics, Department of Psychiatry, University of California at San Diego, San Diego, CA, USA.
| | - Stephen L Buka
- Department of Community Health, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA.
| | - Larry J Seidman
- Division of Psychiatric Neuroscience, Athinoula A. Martinos Center, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Division of Public Psychiatry, Massachusetts Mental Health Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Anne Klibanski
- Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Neuroendocrine Unit, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
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14
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17β-estradiol differentially regulates stress circuitry activity in healthy and depressed women. Neuropsychopharmacology 2015; 40:566-76. [PMID: 25113601 PMCID: PMC4289944 DOI: 10.1038/npp.2014.203] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2014] [Revised: 08/01/2014] [Accepted: 08/02/2014] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
Many regions within stress neurocircuitry, including the anterior hypothalamus, amygdala, hippocampus, and medial prefrontal cortex, are densely populated with sex steroid receptors. Substantial evidence from animal studies indicates that the gonadal hormone 17β-estradiol (E₂) impacts the structure and function of these regions, but human studies are limited. Characterizing estradiol's role in stress circuitry in vivo in humans may have important clinical implications given the comorbidity between major depressive disorder (MDD), stress circuitry dysfunction and endocrine dysregulation. In this study, we determined estradiol's role in modulating activity within cortical and subcortical stress circuitry regions in healthy and MDD women. Subjects were part of a population-based birth cohort, the New England Family Study. Capitalizing on the endogenous fluctuation in E₂ during the menstrual cycle, we conducted a within-person repeated-measures functional neuroimaging study in which 15 women with recurrent MDD, in remission, and 15 healthy control women underwent hormonal evaluations, behavioral testing, and fMRI scanning on two occasions, under low and high E₂ conditions. Subjects completed an fMRI scan while undergoing a mild visual stress challenge that reliably activated stress neural circuitry. Results demonstrate that E₂ modulates activity across key stress circuitry regions, including bilateral amygdala, hippocampus, and hypothalamus. In healthy women, robust task-evoked BOLD signal changes observed under low E₂ conditions were attenuated under high E₂ conditions. This hormonal capacity to regulate activity in stress circuitry was not observed in MDD women, despite their remitted status, suggesting that dysregulation of gonadal hormone function may be a characteristic trait of the disease. These findings serve to deepen our understanding of estradiol's actions in the healthy brain and the neurobiological mechanisms that may underlie the pronounced sex difference in MDD risk.
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15
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Liu X, Shi H. Regulation of Estrogen Receptor α Expression in the Hypothalamus by Sex Steroids: Implication in the Regulation of Energy Homeostasis. Int J Endocrinol 2015; 2015:949085. [PMID: 26491443 PMCID: PMC4600542 DOI: 10.1155/2015/949085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2015] [Revised: 07/18/2015] [Accepted: 07/22/2015] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Sex differences exist in the complex regulation of energy homeostasis that utilizes central and peripheral systems. It is widely accepted that sex steroids, especially estrogens, are important physiological and pathological components in this sex-specific regulation. Estrogens exert their biological functions via estrogen receptors (ERs). ERα, a classic nuclear receptor, contributes to metabolic regulation and sexual behavior more than other ER subtypes. Physiological and molecular studies have identified multiple ERα-rich nuclei in the hypothalamus of the central nervous system (CNS) as sites of actions that mediate effects of estrogens. Much of our understanding of ERα regulation has been obtained using transgenic models such as ERα global or nuclei-specific knockout mice. A fundamental question concerning how ERα is regulated in wild-type animals, including humans, in response to alterations in steroid hormone levels, due to experimental manipulation (i.e., castration and hormone replacement) or physiological stages (i.e., puberty, pregnancy, and menopause), lacks consistent answers. This review discusses how different sex hormones affect ERα expression in the hypothalamus. This information will contribute to the knowledge of estrogen action in the CNS, further our understanding of discrepancies in correlation of altered sex hormone levels with metabolic disturbances when comparing both sexes, and improve health issues in postmenopausal women.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xian Liu
- Department of Biology, Miami University, 700 E. High Street, Oxford, OH 45056, USA
| | - Haifei Shi
- Department of Biology, Miami University, 700 E. High Street, Oxford, OH 45056, USA
- *Haifei Shi:
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16
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Social neuroendocrinology of human aggression: examining the role of competition-induced testosterone dynamics. Neuroscience 2014; 286:171-86. [PMID: 25463514 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2014.11.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 194] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2014] [Revised: 10/18/2014] [Accepted: 11/17/2014] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
A large body of evidence indicates that individual differences in baseline concentrations of testosterone (T) are only weakly correlated with human aggression. Importantly, T concentrations are not static, but rather fluctuate rapidly in the context of competitive interactions, suggesting that acute fluctuations in T may be more relevant for our understanding of the neuroendocrine mechanisms underlying variability in human aggression. In this paper, we provide an overview of the literature on T and human competition, with a primary focus on the role of competition-induced T dynamics in the modulation of human aggression. In addition, we discuss potential neural mechanisms underlying the effect of T dynamics on human aggression. Finally, we highlight several challenges for the field of social neuroendocrinology and discuss areas of research that may enhance our understanding of the complex bi-directional relationship between T and human social behavior.
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17
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Goldstein JM, Holsen L, Handa R, Tobet S. Fetal hormonal programming of sex differences in depression: linking women's mental health with sex differences in the brain across the lifespan. Front Neurosci 2014; 8:247. [PMID: 25249929 PMCID: PMC4157606 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2014.00247] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2014] [Accepted: 07/24/2014] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Jill M Goldstein
- Division of Women's Health, Departments of Psychiatry and Medicine, Connors Center for Women's Health and Gender Biology, Brigham and Women's Hospital Boston, MA, USA ; Departments of Psychiatry and Medicine, Harvard Medical School Boston, MA, USA ; Division of Psychiatric Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital Boston, MA, USA
| | - Laura Holsen
- Division of Women's Health, Departments of Psychiatry and Medicine, Connors Center for Women's Health and Gender Biology, Brigham and Women's Hospital Boston, MA, USA ; Departments of Psychiatry and Medicine, Harvard Medical School Boston, MA, USA
| | - Robert Handa
- Department of Basic Medical Sciences, University of Arizona College of Medicine Phoenix, AZ, USA
| | - Stuart Tobet
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and School of Biomedical Engineering, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University Fort Collins, CO, USA
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18
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Goetz SM, Tang L, Thomason ME, Diamond MP, Hariri AR, Carré JM. Testosterone rapidly increases neural reactivity to threat in healthy men: a novel two-step pharmacological challenge paradigm. Biol Psychiatry 2014; 76:324-31. [PMID: 24576686 PMCID: PMC9552187 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2014.01.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 109] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2013] [Revised: 12/17/2013] [Accepted: 01/10/2014] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Previous research suggests that testosterone (T) plays a key role in shaping competitive and aggressive behavior in humans, possibly by modulating threat-related neural circuitry. However, this research has been limited by the use of T augmentation that fails to account for baseline differences and has been conducted exclusively in women. Thus, the extent to which normal physiologic concentrations of T affect threat-related brain function in men remains unknown. METHODS In the current study, we use a novel two-step pharmacologic challenge protocol to overcome these limitations and to evaluate causal modulation of threat- and aggression-related neural circuits by T in healthy young men (n = 16). First, we controlled for baseline differences in T through administration of a gonadotropin releasing hormone antagonist. Once a common baseline was established across participants, we then administered T to within the normal physiologic range. During this second step of the protocol we acquired functional neuroimaging data to examine the impact of T augmentation on neural circuitry supporting threat and aggression. RESULTS Gonadotropin releasing hormone antagonism successfully reduced circulating concentrations of T and brought subjects to a common baseline. Administration of T rapidly increased circulating T concentrations and was associated with heightened reactivity of the amygdala, hypothalamus, and periaqueductal grey to angry facial expressions. CONCLUSIONS These findings provide novel causal evidence that T rapidly potentiates the response of neural circuits mediating threat processing and aggressive behavior in men.
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19
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Goldstein JM, Handa RJ, Tobet SA. Disruption of fetal hormonal programming (prenatal stress) implicates shared risk for sex differences in depression and cardiovascular disease. Front Neuroendocrinol 2014; 35:140-58. [PMID: 24355523 PMCID: PMC3917309 DOI: 10.1016/j.yfrne.2013.12.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2013] [Revised: 10/31/2013] [Accepted: 12/04/2013] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Comorbidity of major depressive disorder (MDD) and cardiovascular disease (CVD) represents the fourth leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, and women have a two times greater risk than men. Thus understanding the pathophysiology has widespread implications for attenuation and prevention of disease burden. We suggest that sex-dependent MDD-CVD comorbidity may result from alterations in fetal programming consequent to the prenatal maternal environments that produce excess glucocorticoids, which then drive sex-dependent developmental alterations of the fetal hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis circuitry impacting mood, stress regulation, autonomic nervous system (ANS), and the vasculature in adulthood. Evidence is consistent with the hypothesis that disruptions of pathways associated with gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA) in neuronal and vascular development and growth factors have critical roles in key developmental periods and adult responses to injury in heart and brain. Understanding the potential fetal origins of these sex differences will contribute to development of novel sex-dependent therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- J M Goldstein
- Departments of Psychiatry and Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH), Connors Center for Women's Health & Gender Biology, 1620 Tremont St. BC-3-34, Boston, MA 02120, USA; BWH, Departments of Psychiatry and Medicine, 1620 Tremont St. BC-3-34, Boston, MA 02120, USA.
| | - R J Handa
- Department of Basic Medical Sciences, University of Arizona College of Medicine, 425 N. Fifth Street, Phoenix, AZ 85004, USA
| | - S A Tobet
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and School of Biomedical Engineering, Colorado State University, 1617 Campus Delivery, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
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20
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Wu Y, Hill R, Gogos A, van den Buuse M. Sex differences and the role of estrogen in animal models of schizophrenia: Interaction with BDNF. Neuroscience 2013; 239:67-83. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2012.10.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2012] [Revised: 10/08/2012] [Accepted: 10/09/2012] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
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21
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Chung WCJ, Auger AP. Gender differences in neurodevelopment and epigenetics. Pflugers Arch 2013; 465:573-84. [PMID: 23503727 DOI: 10.1007/s00424-013-1258-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2013] [Revised: 02/26/2013] [Accepted: 02/27/2013] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
The concept that the brain differs in make-up between males and females is not new. For example, it is well established that anatomists in the nineteenth century found sex differences in human brain weight. The importance of sex differences in the organization of the brain cannot be overstated as they may directly affect cognitive functions, such as verbal skills and visuospatial tasks in a sex-dependent fashion. Moreover, the incidence of neurological and psychiatric diseases is also highly dependent on sex. These clinical observations reiterate the importance that gender must be taken into account as a relevant possible contributing factor in order to understand the pathogenesis of neurological and psychiatric disorders. Gender-dependent differentiation of the brain has been detected at every level of organization--morphological, neurochemical, and functional--and has been shown to be primarily controlled by sex differences in gonadal steroid hormone levels during perinatal development. In this review, we discuss howthe gonadal steroid hormone testosterone and its metabolites affect downstream signaling cascades, including gonadal steroid receptor activation, and epigenetic events in order to differentiate the brain in a gender-dependent fashion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wilson C J Chung
- Department of Biological Sciences and School of Biomedical Sciences, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242, USA.
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22
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Wilson ME, Sengoku T. Developmental regulation of neuronal genes by DNA methylation: environmental influences. Int J Dev Neurosci 2013; 31:448-51. [PMID: 23501000 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijdevneu.2013.03.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2012] [Revised: 03/04/2013] [Accepted: 03/06/2013] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Steroid hormones have wide-ranging organizational, activational and protective actions in the brain. In particular, the organizational effects of early exposure to 17β-estradiol (E2) and glucocorticoids are essential for long-lasting behavioral and cognitive functions. Both steroid hormones mediate many of their actions through intracellular receptors that act as transcription factors. In the rodent cerebral cortex, estrogen receptor mRNA and protein expression are high early in postnatal life and declines dramatically as the animal approaches puberty. An understanding of the molecular mechanisms driving this developmental regulation of gene expression is critical for understanding the complex events that determine lasting brain physiology and prime the plasticity of neurons. Gene expression can be suppressed by the epigenetic modification of the promoter regions by DNA methylation that results in gene silencing. Indeed, the decrease in ERα mRNA expression in the cortex during development is accompanied by an increase in promoter methylation. Numerous environmental stimuli can alter the DNA methylation that occurs for ERα, glucocorticoid receptors, as well as many other critical genes involved in neuronal development. For example, maternal behavior toward pups can alter epigenetic regulation of ERα mRNA expression. Additionally perinatal stress and exposure to environmental estrogens can also have lasting effects on gene expression by modifying DNA methylation of these important genes. Taken together, there appears to be a critical window during development where, outside factors that alter epigenetic programming can have lasting effects on neuronal gene expression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melinda E Wilson
- Department of Physiology, College of Medicine, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40536, United States.
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Polymorphisms in the maternal sex steroid pathway are associated with behavior problems in male offspring. Psychiatr Genet 2012; 22:115-22. [PMID: 22336992 DOI: 10.1097/ypg.0b013e328351850b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Slight perturbations in maternal sex steroid production and metabolism may interfere with normal fetal neurodevelopment. The balance of maternal estrogens and androgens may have direct fetal effects, may influence the fetal hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis, or may alter local hormonal activity within the fetal brain. We investigated maternal functional polymorphisms of CYP17, CYP19, and CYP1B1, which control three major enzymatic steps in sex steroid biosynthesis and metabolism, in relation to childhood behaviors. METHODS The Mount Sinai Children's Environmental Health Study enrolled a multiethnic urban pregnancy cohort from 1998 to 2002 (n=404). DNA was obtained from maternal blood (n=149) and from neonatal cord blood (n=53). At each visit, mothers completed the Behavior Assessment System for Children, a parent-reported questionnaire used to evaluate children for behavior problems. We focused on problem behaviors more commonly associated with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (Hyperactivity, Attention Problems, Externalizing Behaviors, Conduct Disorder, Poor Adaptability) to determine whether maternal genetic variants in sex steroid production and metabolism influence sexually dimorphic behaviors in offspring. RESULTS The more active gene variants were significantly associated with Attention Problems and poorer Adaptive Skills in male compared with female offspring. The CYP19 variant allele was also significantly associated with worse scores for boys on the Hyperactivity, Externalizing Problems Composite, and Adaptive Skills Composite scales (P<0.05). CONCLUSION We observed maladaptive behaviors in the male offspring of mothers who carried functional polymorphisms in the sex steroid pathway. The strongest associations were in domains commonly affected in attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder.
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Su C, Rybalchenko N, Schreihofer DA, Singh M, Abbassi B, Cunningham RL. Cell Models for the Study of Sex Steroid Hormone Neurobiology. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2012; S2. [PMID: 22860237 DOI: 10.4172/2157-7536.s2-003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
To date many aspects of neurons and glia biology remain elusive, due in part to the cellular and molecular complexity of the brain. In recent decades, cell models from different brain areas have been established and proven invaluable toward understanding this complexity. In the field of steroid hormone neurobiology, an important question is: what is the profile of steroid hormone receptor expression in these specific cell lines? Currently, a clear summary of such receptor profiling is lacking. For this reason, we summarized in this review the expression of estrogen, progesterone, and androgen receptors in several widely used cell lines (glial and neuronal) derived from the forebrain and midbrain, based on our own data and that from the literature. Such information will aid in the selection of specific cell lines used to test hypotheses related to the biology of estrogens, progestins, and/or androgens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chang Su
- Department of Pharmacology and Neuroscience, University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth, Fort Worth, TX 76107 USA
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25
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Abstract
During aging, there is an increase in neurodegenerative diseases and a decrease in cognitive performance. Postmenopausal women are more vulnerable as their estrogen levels decline, but most hormone replacement therapies do not prevent cognitive decline. One potential reason is that the timing of hormone replacement is critical and changes in the estrogen receptor expression may over-ride hormonal intervention. In rodents, estrogen receptor β (ERβ) mRNA decreases in the cortex with age. One mechanism by which ERβ mRNA could be regulated is by epigenetic modification of ERβ promoter. Here, we show an increase in methylation of ERβ promoter corresponding to decrease in ERβ mRNA in the cortex of an aging female.
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Fenzi F, Rizzzuto N. Estrogen receptors localization in the spinal trigeminal nucleus: an immunohistochemical study in humans. Eur J Pain 2011; 15:1002-7. [PMID: 21640622 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejpain.2011.05.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2011] [Revised: 04/08/2011] [Accepted: 05/08/2011] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
There is increasing evidence for estrogenic modulation of neurotransmission within the trigeminal pain pathway. It is also likely that the effects of estrogens may be influenced by the presence and localization of estrogen receptors (ERs) in a given brain area. To date, human data on the localization of ERs in the spinal trigeminal nucleus (STN), a key brain region in craniofacial nociception, are lacking. To ascertain whether ERs are expressed in the human STN, we performed immunohistochemical analysis on medulla oblongata samples taken from eight adult subjects (three men and five women; age range, 23-71 years) who had died from causes unrelated to neurologic or endocrine diseases. Paraffin-embedded sections at the level of the subnucleus caudalis and interpolaris were incubated with anti-estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) and anti-estrogen receptor beta (ERβ) antibodies. ERα immunoreactivity was detected in the nucleus and cytoplasm of neuronal and glial cells in the STN and in the nerve fibers within the spinal trigeminal tract in all eight subjects; ERβ immunoreactivity was observed in the cytoplasm of neuronal cells in five subjects. This study is the first to provide evidence in humans that ER immunoreactivity is detectable on neuronal and glial cells of the STN. The two ER subtypes exhibited different expression patterns, with higher expression levels of ERα than ERβ. The presence of ER-containing cells in the STN suggests that estrogens may directly affect trigeminal neuron excitability in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Flavio Fenzi
- Department of Neurological, Neuropsychological, Morphological and Movement Sciences, University of Verona, Verona, Italy.
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27
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Holsen LM, Spaeth SB, Lee JH, Ogden LA, Klibanski A, Whitfield-Gabrieli S, Goldstein JM. Stress response circuitry hypoactivation related to hormonal dysfunction in women with major depression. J Affect Disord 2011; 131:379-87. [PMID: 21183223 PMCID: PMC3073153 DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2010.11.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 73] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2010] [Revised: 11/01/2010] [Accepted: 11/24/2010] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Women have approximately twice the risk of major depressive disorder (MDD) than men, yet this difference remains largely unexplained. Previous MDD research suggests high rates of endocrine dysfunction, which may be related to deficits in brain activity in stress response circuitry [hypothalamus, amygdala, hippocampus, anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), orbitofrontal cortex (OFC)]. This functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study investigated the relationship between hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG)-axis hormones and stress response circuitry dysfunction in MDD in women. METHODS During the late follicular/midcycle phase of the menstrual cycle, female participants (10 with extensive histories of MDD, in remission, 10 healthy controls) were scanned while viewing negative and neutral arousal pictures. Group differences in blood oxygen-level dependent (BOLD) signal changes were analyzed using SPM2. Baseline gonadal hormones included estradiol, progesterone, and testosterone. RESULTS fMRI results showed greater BOLD signal intensity changes in controls versus MDD in hypothalamus, amygdala, hippocampus, OFC, ACC, and subgenual ACC, findings unrelated to medication status. MDD women had a lower serum estradiol and higher serum progesterone compared to controls. Hypoactivations in hypothalamus, subgenual ACC, amygdala and OFC in MDD were associated with low estradiol and high progesterone. LIMITATIONS Generalizability of our findings is limited by small sample size and restriction to females, although this did not affect the internal validity of the results. CONCLUSIONS Hypoactivation of the stress response circuitry in MDD women is associated with dysregulation of the HPG-axis. Associations between brain activity deficits and hormonal disruption in MDD may ultimately contribute to understanding sex differences in MDD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura M. Holsen
- Harvard Medical School, Departments of Psychiatry and Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Connors Center for Women's Health and Gender Biology,Massachusetts General Hospital & Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Athinoula Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging
| | - Sarah B. Spaeth
- Harvard Medical School, Departments of Psychiatry and Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Connors Center for Women's Health and Gender Biology,Massachusetts General Hospital & Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Athinoula Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging
| | - Jong-Hwan Lee
- Harvard Medical School, Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital
| | - Lauren A. Ogden
- Harvard Medical School, Departments of Psychiatry and Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Connors Center for Women's Health and Gender Biology,Massachusetts General Hospital & Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Athinoula Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging
| | - Anne Klibanski
- Harvard Medical School, Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital
| | - Susan Whitfield-Gabrieli
- Massachusetts General Hospital & Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Athinoula Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging,Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
| | - Jill M. Goldstein
- Harvard Medical School, Departments of Psychiatry and Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Connors Center for Women's Health and Gender Biology,Massachusetts General Hospital & Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Athinoula Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging,Corresponding author: Jill M. Goldstein, Ph.D.; Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Division of Women’s Health; One Brigham Circle; 1620 Tremont St., Boston, MA 02120; Phone: 617-525-7517; Fax: 617-525-7746;
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28
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Abstract
Evidence suggests sex differences in schizophrenia reflect differences in both neurodevelopmental processes and social effects on disease risk and course. Male:female incidence approximates 1.4:1 but at older onset women predominate. Prevalence differences appear smaller. Men have poorer premorbid adjustment and present with worse negative and less depressive symptoms than women, which may explain their worse medium term outcome according to a range of measures. Substance abuse is a predominantly male activity in this group, as elsewhere. Findings of sex differences in brain morphology are inconsistent but occur in areas that normally show sexual dimorphism, implying that the same factors are important drivers of sex differences in both normal neurodevelopmental processes and those associated with schizophrenia. There are sex differences in antipsychotic responses but sex-specific endocrine effects on illness and response to antipsychotics are potentially complex. Oestrogen's role as an adjunctive medication is not yet clear due to methodological differences between the few randomized controlled trials. Services that are sensitive to differences in gender can better meet their patients' specific needs and potentially improve outcome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathryn M Abel
- Centre for Women's Mental Health, School of Community Based Medicine, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, UK.
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Wilson ME, Westberry JM, Trout AL. Estrogen receptor-alpha gene expression in the cortex: sex differences during development and in adulthood. Horm Behav 2011; 59:353-7. [PMID: 20713055 PMCID: PMC3016448 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2010.08.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2010] [Revised: 07/21/2010] [Accepted: 08/08/2010] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
17β-estradiol is a hormone with far-reaching organizational, activational and protective actions in both male and female brains. The organizational effects of early estrogen exposure are essential for long-lasting behavioral and cognitive functions. Estradiol mediates many of its effects through the intracellular receptors, estrogen receptor-alpha (ERα) and estrogen receptor-beta (ERβ). In the rodent cerebral cortex, estrogen receptor expression is high early in postnatal life and declines dramatically as the animal approaches puberty. This decline is accompanied by decreased expression of ERα mRNA. This change in expression is the same in both males and females in the developing isocortex and hippocampus. An understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in the regulation of estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) gene expression is critical for understanding the developmental, as well as changes in postpubertal expression of the estrogen receptor. One mechanism of suppressing gene expression is by the epigenetic modification of the promoter regions by DNA methylation that results in gene silencing. The decrease in ERα mRNA expression during development is accompanied by an increase in promoter methylation. Another example of regulation of ERα gene expression in the adult cortex is the changes that occur following neuronal injury. Many animal studies have demonstrated that the endogenous estrogen, 17β-estradiol, is neuroprotective. Specifically, low levels of estradiol protect the cortex from neuronal death following middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). In females, this protection is mediated through an ERα-dependent mechanism. ERα expression is rapidly increased following MCAO in females, but not in males. This increase is accompanied by a decrease in methylation of the promoter suggesting a return to the developmental program of gene expression within neurons. Taken together, during development and in adulthood, regulation of ERα gene expression in the cortex can occur by DNA methylation and in a sex-dependent fashion in the adult brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melinda E Wilson
- Department of Physiology, College of Medicine, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40536, USA.
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30
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Estradiol reduces dendritic spine density in the ventral striatum of female Syrian hamsters. Brain Struct Funct 2010; 215:187-94. [PMID: 20953625 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-010-0284-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2010] [Accepted: 09/30/2010] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Estradiol affects a variety of brain regions by modulating physiological and cellular functions as well as neuronal morphology. Within the striatum, estradiol is known to induce physiological and molecular changes, yet estradiol's effects on striatal dendritic morphology have not yet been evaluated. Using ballistic delivery of the lipophilic dye DiI to tissue sections, we were able to evaluate estradiol's effects on striatal morphology in female Syrian hamsters. We found that estradiol significantly decreased spine density within the nucleus accumbens core, with no effect in the nucleus accumbens shell or caudate. Interestingly, estradiol treatment caused a significant deconstruction of spines from more to less mature spine subtypes in both the nucleus accumbens core and shell regardless of changes in spine density. These results are significant in that they offer a novel mechanism for estradiol actions on a wide variety of nucleus accumbens functions such as motivation or reward as well as their pathological consequences (e.g. drug addiction).
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31
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Martin E, Gonzalez R, Vassileva J, Maki P. HIV+ men and women show different performance patterns on procedural learning tasks. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2010; 33:112-20. [PMID: 20694870 DOI: 10.1080/13803395.2010.493150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
The literature suggests that nondeclarative, or nonconscious, learning might be impaired among HIV-seropositive (HIV+) individuals compared with HIV-seronegative (HIV-) matched control groups, but these studies have included relatively few women. We administered measures of motor skill and probabilistic learning, tasks with a nondeclarative or procedural learning component that are dependent on integrity of prefrontal-striatal systems, to well-matched groups of 148 men and 65 women with a history of substance dependence that included 45 men and 30 women seropositive for HIV. All participants were abstinent at testing. Compared to HIV- women, HIV+ women performed significantly more poorly on both tasks, but HIV+ men's performance did not differ significantly from that of HIV- men on either task. These different patterns of performance indicate that features of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder (HAND) cannot always be generalized from men to women. Additional studies are needed to address directly the possibility of sex differences in HAND and the possibility that women might be more vulnerable to the effects of HIV and substance dependence on some neurocognitive functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eileen Martin
- University of Illinois College of Medicine-Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USA.
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32
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Micevych P, Bondar G, Kuo J. Estrogen actions on neuroendocrine glia. Neuroendocrinology 2010; 91:211-22. [PMID: 20332598 PMCID: PMC2889254 DOI: 10.1159/000289568] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2009] [Accepted: 02/18/2010] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Astrocytes are the most abundant cells in the central nervous system (CNS). It appears that astrocytes are as diverse as neurons, having different phenotypes in various regions throughout the brain and participating in intercellular communication that involves signaling to neurons. It is not surprising then that astrocytes in the hypothalamus have an active role in the CNS regulation of reproduction. In addition to the traditional mechanism involving ensheathment of neurons and processes, astrocytes may have a critical role in regulating estrogen-positive feedback. Work in our laboratory has focused on the relationship between circulating estradiol and progesterone synthesized de novo in the brain. We have demonstrated that circulating estradiol stimulates the synthesis of progesterone in adult hypothalamic astrocytes, and this neuroprogesterone is critical for initiating the LH surge. Estradiol cell signaling is initiated at the cell membrane and involves the transactivation of metabotropic glutamate receptor type 1a (mGluR1a) leading to the release of intracellular stores of calcium. We used surface biotinylation to demonstrate that estrogen receptor-alpha (ERalpha) is present in the cell membrane and has an extracellular portion. Like other membrane receptors, ERalpha is inserted into the membrane and removed via internalization after agonist stimulation. This trafficking is directly regulated by estradiol, which rapidly and transiently increases the levels of membrane ERalpha, and upon activation, increases internalization that finally leads to ERalpha degradation. This autoregulation temporally limits membrane-initiated estradiol cell signaling. Thus, neuroprogesterone, the necessary signal for the LH surge, is released when circulating levels of estradiol peak on proestrus and activate progesterone receptors whose expression has been induced by the gradual rise of estradiol during follicular development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul Micevych
- Department of Neurobiology, Laboratory of Neuroendocrinology, UCLA Brain Research Institute, Los Angeles, Calif., USA
- *Paul Micevych, Department of Neurobiology, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, 10833 LeConte Avenue, 73-078 CHS, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1763 (USA), Tel. +1 310 206 8265, Fax +1 310 825 2224, E-Mail
| | - Galyna Bondar
- Department of Neurobiology, Laboratory of Neuroendocrinology, UCLA Brain Research Institute, Los Angeles, Calif., USA
| | - John Kuo
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, Calif., USA
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33
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Abstract
17Beta-oestradiol is a pleiotropic hormone with organisational, activational and protective actions in both male and female mammals. It is responsible for numerous aspects of brain development, including sexual differentiation of the brain. The organisational effects of early oestrogen exposure are essential for long-lasting cognitive and behavioural functions. Oestradiol mediates its effects through several intracellular or membrane-associated receptor proteins. In the rodent cerebral cortex, oestrogen receptor (ER) expression, as demonstrated by hormone binding studies, is high early in postnatal life and declines precipitously as the animal approaches puberty. This decline is caused by a decreased expression of ERalpha mRNA. An understanding of the mechanisms involved in the regulation of ERalpha gene expression is critical for understanding the developmental as well as postpubertal expression of the ER. Despite recent data indicating the current hormone replacement therapies can be detrimental in older women, numerous animal studies have shown that the endogenous oestrogen, 17beta-oestradiol, is neuroprotective. Specifically, low levels of oestradiol protect the cortex from cell death caused by middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). The attenuation of cell death by oestradiol in this model is mediated through an ERalpha-dependent mechanism. To this end, ERalpha expression is rapidly increased after MCAO, suggesting a return to the developmental programme of gene expression within neurones. One mechanism of suppressing gene expression is by the epigenetic modification of the promoter regions, which results in gene silencing. Of the epigenetic modifications utilised by cells, DNA methylation has been intensively studied as a mechanism by which genes are both permanently and reversibly silenced. Little is known about the mechanisms of ER gene regulation in the brain; however, in breast cancer cells, both ERalpha and ERbeta are down-regulated by promoter methylation, and subsequent binding of the methyl-CpG-binding protein, MeCP2. Data from our laboratory demonstrate that the promoters of the ERalpha gene are also methylated during development and after neuronal injury, suggesting a role of DNA methylation in regulating ER expression in the brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- M E Wilson
- Department of Physiology, College of Medicine, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40536, USA.
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34
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Garcia-Segura LM, Lorenz B, DonCarlos LL. The role of glia in the hypothalamus: implications for gonadal steroid feedback and reproductive neuroendocrine output. Reproduction 2008; 135:419-29. [PMID: 18367504 DOI: 10.1530/rep-07-0540] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Neuron-to-glia, glia-to-neuron, and glia-to-glia communication are implicated in the modulation of neuronal activity and synaptic transmission relevant to reproduction. Glial cells play an important role in neuroendocrine regulation and participate in the sexual differentiation of neuronal connectivity of brain regions involved in the control of reproductive neuroendocrine output. During puberty, modifications in the morphology and chemistry of astrocytes and tanycytes in the hypothalamus and median eminence influence the maturation of the neuronal circuits controlling the secretion of GnRH. During adult reproductive life, the glial cells participate in the transient remodeling of neuronal connectivity in the preoptic area, the arcuate nucleus, the median eminence, and other brain regions involved in the control of reproduction. Gonadal hormones regulate glial plasticity by direct and indirect effects and regulate various other endocrine signals, local soluble factors and adhesion molecules that also affect glial function and glia-to-neuron communication. The glial cells, therefore, are central to the coordination of endocrine and local inputs that bring about neural plasticity and adapt reproductive capacity to homeostatic signals.
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35
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Wilson ME, Westberry JM, Prewitt AK. Dynamic regulation of estrogen receptor-alpha gene expression in the brain: a role for promoter methylation? Front Neuroendocrinol 2008; 29:375-85. [PMID: 18439661 PMCID: PMC2460564 DOI: 10.1016/j.yfrne.2008.03.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2007] [Revised: 02/29/2008] [Accepted: 03/04/2008] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Estrogen has long been known to play an important role in coordinating the neuroendocrine events that control sexual development, sexual behavior and reproduction. Estrogen actions in other, non-reproductive areas of the brain have also been described. It is now known that estrogen can also influence learning, memory, and emotion and has neurotrophic and neuroprotective properties. The actions of estrogen are largely mediated through at least two intracellular estrogen receptors. Both estrogen receptor-alpha and estrogen receptor-beta are expressed in a wide variety of brain regions. Estrogen receptor-alpha (ERalpha), however, undergoes developmental and brain region-specific changes in expression. The precise molecular mechanisms that regulate its expression at the level of gene transcription are not well understood. Adding to the complexity of its regulation, the estrogen receptor gene contains multiple promoters that drive its expression. In the cortex in particular, the ERalpha mRNA expression is dynamically regulated during postnatal development and again following neuronal injury. Epigenetic modification of chromatin is increasingly being understood as a mechanism of neuronal gene regulation. This review examines the potential regulation of the ERalpha gene by such epigenetic mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melinda E Wilson
- Department of Physiology, College of Medicine, University of Kentucky, 800 Rose Street, Lexington, KY 40536, USA.
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36
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Blaustein JD. Neuroendocrine regulation of feminine sexual behavior: lessons from rodent models and thoughts about humans. Annu Rev Psychol 2008; 59:93-118. [PMID: 17678443 DOI: 10.1146/annurev.psych.59.103006.093556] [Citation(s) in RCA: 72] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Much has been learned concerning the neuroendocrine processes and cellular mechanisms by which steroid hormones influence reproductive behaviors in rodents and other animals. In this review, a short discussion of hormones and feminine sexual behavior in some rodent species is followed by an outline of the main principles that have been learned from these studies. Examples are given of the importance of considering the timing of hormone treatments, dosage of hormone, use of a specific hormone, particular class of hormones, or form of hormone, interactions between hormones, route of administration, peripheral factors that influence hormonal response, and the possible mechanisms of action by which hormones and other factors influence sexual behaviors. Although cellular studies in humans are presently impossible to perform, mechanistic studies in rodents may provide clues about the neuroendocrine mechanisms by which hormones act and interact in the brain to influence behavior in all species, including humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey D Blaustein
- Center for Neuroendocrine Studies, Neuroscience and Behavior Program and Psychology Department, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts 01003-9271, USA.
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37
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Kim EJ, Oh CS, Kim J, Kim WH, Chung YH, Shin DH. Reactive astrocytes expressing intense estrogen receptor-alpha immunoreactivities have much elongated cytoplasmic processes: an autopsy case of human cerebellar tissue with multiple genitourinary and gastrointestinal anomalies. J Korean Med Sci 2007; 22:936-41. [PMID: 17982251 PMCID: PMC2693869 DOI: 10.3346/jkms.2007.22.5.936] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
We performed an immunohistochemical study on the estrogen receptor alpha (ER-alpha) distribution in the cerebellum of a human neonate with multiple congenital anomalies, that had been acquired during autopsy. Although the exact pathology in the brain was not clearly elucidated in this study, an unidentified stressful condition might have induced the astrocytes into reactive states. In this immunohistochemical study on the neonatal cerebellum with multiple congenital anomalies, intense ER-alpha immunoreactivities (IRs) were localized mainly within the white matter even though ER-alpha IRs were known to be mainly localized in neurons. Double immunohistochemical staining showed that ER-alpha IR cells were reactive astrocytes, but not neurons. Interestingly, there were differences in the process length among the reactive astrocytes showing ER-alpha IRs. Our quantitative data confirmed that among the glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP)-expressing reactive astrocytes, the cells exhibiting intense ER-alpha IRs have much longer cytoplasmic processes and relatively weaker GFAP IRs. Taken together, the elongated processes of reactive astrocytes might be due to decreased expression of GFAP, which might be induced by elevated expression of ER-alpha even though the elucidation of the exact mechanism needs further studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eo-Jin Kim
- Department of Pathology, College of Medicine, Soonchunhyang University, Chonan, Korea
| | - Chang Seok Oh
- Department of Internal Medicine, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - Jaehyup Kim
- Department of Anatomy, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - Wu Ho Kim
- Department of Pathology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - Yoon Hee Chung
- Department of Anatomy, College of Medicine, Chung-Ang University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Dong Hoon Shin
- Department of Anatomy, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
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38
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Baroncini M, Allet C, Leroy D, Beauvillain JC, Francke JP, Prevot V. Morphological evidence for direct interaction between gonadotrophin-releasing hormone neurones and astroglial cells in the human hypothalamus. J Neuroendocrinol 2007; 19:691-702. [PMID: 17680884 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2826.2007.01576.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
In rodents, there is compelling evidence indicating that dynamic cell-to-cell communications involving cross talk between astroglial cells (such as astrocytes and specialised ependymoglial cells known as tanycytes) and neurones are important in regulating the secretion of gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH), the neurohormone that controls both sexual maturation and adult reproductive function. However, whether such astroglial cell-GnRH neurone interactions occur in the human brain is not known. In the present study, we used immunofluorescence to examine the anatomical relationship between GnRH neurones and glial cells within the hypothalamus of five women. Double-staining experiments demonstrated the ensheathment of GnRH neurone perikarya by glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP)-immunoreactive astrocyte processes in the periventricular zone of the tuberal region of the hypothalamus. GFAP immunoreactivity did not overlap that of GnRH at the GnRH neurone's projection site (i.e. the median eminence of the hypothalamus). Rather, human GnRH neuroendocrine fibres were found to be closely associated with vimentin or nestin-immunopositive radial glial processes likely belonging to tanycytes. In line with these light microscopy data, ultrastructural examination of GnRH-immunoreactive neurones showed numerous glial cells in direct apposition to pre-embedding-labelled GnRH cell bodies and/or dendrites in the infundibular nucleus, whereas postembedding immunogold-labelled GnRH nerve terminals were often seen to be enwrapped by glial cell processes in the median eminence. GnRH nerve button were sometimes visualised in close proximity to fenestrated pituitary portal blood capillaries and/or evaginations of the basal lamina that delineate the pericapillary space. In summary, these data demonstrate that GnRH neurones morphologically interact with astrocytes and tanycytes in the human brain and provide evidence that glial cells may contribute physiologically to the process by which the neuroendocrine brain controls the function of GnRH neurones in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Baroncini
- INSERM U837-Development and Plasticity of the Postnatal Brain, Jean-Pierre Aubert Research Center, Place de Verdun, 59045 Lille, France
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39
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Martínez-Cerdeño V, Noctor SC, Kriegstein AR. Estradiol stimulates progenitor cell division in the ventricular and subventricular zones of the embryonic neocortex. Eur J Neurosci 2007; 24:3475-88. [PMID: 17229096 DOI: 10.1111/j.1460-9568.2006.05239.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 81] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Two distinct populations of cerebral cortical progenitor cells that generate neurons during embryogenesis have been identified: radial glial cells and intermediate progenitor cells. Despite advances in our understanding of progenitor cell populations, we know relatively little about factors that regulate their proliferative behaviour. 17-beta-Estradiol (E2) is present in the adult and developing mammalian brain, and plays an important role in central nervous system processes such as neuronal differentiation, survival and plasticity. E2 also stimulates neurogenesis in the adult dentate gyrus. We examined the role of E2 during embryonic cortical neurogenesis through immunohistochemistry, in situ hybridization, functional enzyme assay, organotypic culture and in utero administration of estradiol-blocking agents in mice. We show that aromatase, the E2 synthesizing enzyme, is present in the embryonic neocortex, that estrogen receptor-alpha is present in progenitor cells during cortical neurogenesis, that in vitro E2 administration rapidly promotes proliferation, and that in utero blockade of estrogen receptors decreases proliferation of embryonic cortical progenitor cells. Furthermore, the E2 inhibitor alpha-fetoprotein is expressed at high levels by radial glial cells but at lower levels by intermediate progenitor cells, suggesting that E2 differentially influences the proliferation of these cortical progenitor cell types. These findings demonstrate a new functional role for E2 as a proliferative agent during critical stages of cerebral cortex development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Verónica Martínez-Cerdeño
- Department of Neurology and Program in Developmental and Stem Cell Biology, 513 Parnassus Avenue, HSW 1201, Box 0525, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California 94143, USA.
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40
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Sustratos hormonales de la respuesta sexual femenina. Rev Int Androl 2007. [DOI: 10.1016/s1698-031x(07)74032-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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41
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Bélanger N, Grégoire L, Bédard PJ, Di Paolo T. DHEA improves symptomatic treatment of moderately and severely impaired MPTP monkeys. Neurobiol Aging 2006; 27:1684-93. [PMID: 16253392 DOI: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2005.09.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2004] [Revised: 08/26/2005] [Accepted: 09/25/2005] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
The steroid dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) is abundant in men and women and decreases rapidly during aging. Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder just behind Alzheimer. l-3,4-Dihydroxyphenylalanine (l-Dopa) therapy remains the most effective treatment but many patients develop motor complications. This study investigated the acute effect of DHEA alone and with l-Dopa in 12 females monkeys lesioned with 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) to model PD. DHEA administration alone improved the mean parkinsonian score at 1, 5 and 15mg/kg in moderately and severely impaired MPTP monkeys and increased blood DHEA concentrations. DHEA with a low dose of l-Dopa increased the l-Dopa effect in moderately and severely impaired MPTP monkeys. DHEA lengthened duration of the effect of the low dose of l-Dopa by 15-45min. DHEA at 1, 5 and 15mg/kg combined with a high dose of l-Dopa did not increase dyskinesias. DHEA could act by reducing inhibitory GABAergic activity in the striatal output pathways. DHEA could also be metabolized into estradiol in the brain and increase acutely dopamine activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nancy Bélanger
- Molecular Endocrinology and Oncology Research Center, Laval University Medical Center (CHUL), 2705 Laurier Boulevard, Que., Canada G1V 4G2
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42
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Garcia-Falgueras A, Junque C, Giménez M, Caldú X, Segovia S, Guillamon A. Sex differences in the human olfactory system. Brain Res 2006; 1116:103-11. [PMID: 16942757 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2006.07.115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2006] [Revised: 07/25/2006] [Accepted: 07/28/2006] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
The olfactory system (accessory) implicated in reproductive physiology and behavior in mammals is sexually dimorphic. These brain sex differences present two main characteristics: they are seen in neural circuits related to sexual behavior and sexual physiology and they take one of two opposite morphological patterns (male>female or female>male). The present work reports sex differences in the olfactory system in a large homogeneous sample of men (40) and women (51) using of voxel-based morphology. Gray matter concentration showed sexual dimorphism in several olfactory regions. Women have a higher concentration in the orbitofrontal cortex involving Brodmann's areas 10, 11 and 25 and temporomedial cortex (bilateral hippocampus and right amygdala), as well as their left basal insular cortex. In contrast, men show a higher gray matter concentration in the left entorhinal cortex (Brodmann's area 28), right ventral pallidum, dorsal left insular cortex and a region of the orbitofrontal cortex (Brodmann's area 25). This study supports the hypothesis that the mammalian olfactory system is a sexually dimorphic network and provides a theoretical framework for the morphofunctional approach to sex differences in the human brain.
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Trainor BC, Kyomen HH, Marler CA. Estrogenic encounters: how interactions between aromatase and the environment modulate aggression. Front Neuroendocrinol 2006; 27:170-9. [PMID: 16376420 PMCID: PMC2080681 DOI: 10.1016/j.yfrne.2005.11.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 113] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2005] [Revised: 11/02/2005] [Accepted: 11/08/2005] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
Initial investigations into the mechanistic basis of aggression focused on the role of testosterone (T) and a variety of studies on non-human animals found that elevated T levels promote aggression. However, many correlational studies have not detected a significant association between aggression and peripheral T levels. One reason for this inconsistency may be due to differential metabolism of T within the brain, in particular, the conversion of T to estrogen by aromatase. Thus, differences in aromatase enzyme activity, estrogen receptor expression, and related cofactors may have important effects on how steroids affect aggressive behavior. Hormone manipulation studies conducted in a wide variety of species indicate that estrogens modulate aggression. There is also growing evidence that social experience has important effects on the production of estrogen within the brain, and some cases can not be explained by androgenic regulation of aromatase. Such changes in central aromatase activity may play an important role in determining how social experiences affect the probability of whether an individual engages in aggressive behavior. Although studies have been conducted in many taxa, there has been relatively little integration between literatures examining aggression in different species. In this review, we compare and contrast studies examining aggression in birds, mammals, and humans. By taking an integrative approach to our review, we consider mechanisms that could explain species differences in how estrogen modulates aggression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian C Trainor
- Department of Psychology, Ohio State University, Columbus, 43210, USA.
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Abstract
Hypothalamic astrocytes secrete TGF-beta and 3 alpha,5 alpha-tetrahydro progesterone (3 alpha,5 alpha-THP) in culture. When the astrocyte-conditioned medium (ACM) was incubated with the hypothalamic cell line GT1-7, it resulted in the secretion of GnRH. Immunoneutralization with TGF-beta antibody or ultra-filteration with a 10 kDa cut off filter resulted in attenuation of the GnRH releasing ability of ACM, indicating that TGF-beta was a major factor involved with GnRH release. Treatment with estrogens increases TGF-beta secretion. These observations indicate a significant role of astrocytes in GnRH secretion. Serum-deprivation results in the death of GT1-7 neurons in culture and addition of ACM or TGF-beta to the culture, attenuates cell death. The mechanism of protection from cell death appears to involve phosphorylation of MKK4, JNK, c-Jun(Ser63), and enhancement of AP-1 binding. Co-administration of JNK inhibitors, but not MEK inhibitors attenuated ACM or TGF-beta-induced c-Jun(Ser63) phosphorylation and their neuroprotective effects. These studies suggest that astrocytes can protect neurons, at least in part, by the release of TGF-beta and activation of a c-Jun/AP-1 protective pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Virendra B Mahesh
- Institute of Molecular Medicine and Genetics, Program in Neurobiology, and Department of Neurology, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, GA 30912, USA.
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Dudas B, Merchenthaler I. Three-dimensional representation of the neurotransmitter systems of the human hypothalamus: inputs of the gonadotrophin hormone-releasing hormone neuronal system. J Neuroendocrinol 2006; 18:79-95. [PMID: 16420277 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2826.2005.01398.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 70] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
The gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH) represents the final common pathway of a neuronal network that integrates multiple external and internal factors to control fertility. Among the many inputs GnRH neurones receive, oestrogens play the most important role. In females, oestrogen, in addition to the negative feedback, also exhibits a positive feedback influence upon the activity and output of GnRH neurones to generate the preovulatory luteinising hormone surge and ovulation. Until recently, the belief has been that the GnRH neurones do not contain oestrogen receptors and that the action of oestrogen upon GnRH neurones is indirect, involving several, oestrogen-sensitive neurotransmitter and neuromodulator systems that trans-synaptically regulate the activity of the GnRH neurones. Although this concept still holds for humans, recent studies indicate that oestrogen receptor-beta is expressed in GnRH neurones of the rat. This review provides three dimensional stereoscopic images of GnRH-immunoreactive (IR) and some peptidergic (neuropeptide Y-, substance P-, beta-endorphin-, leu-enkaphalin-, corticotrophin hormone-releasing- and galanin-IR) and catecholaminergic neurones and the communication of these potential oestrogen-sensitive neuronal systems with GnRH neurones in the human hypothalamus. Because the post-mortem human tissue does not allow the electron microscopic identification of synapses on GnRH neurones, the data presented here are based on light microscopic immunocytochemical experiments using high magnification with oil immersion, semithin sections or confocal microscopy.
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Affiliation(s)
- B Dudas
- Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine, LECOM, Erie, PA, USA
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Corona G, Petrone L, Mannucci E, Ricca V, Balercia G, Giommi R, Forti G, Maggi M. The impotent couple: low desire. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2006; 28 Suppl 2:46-52. [PMID: 16236064 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2605.2005.00594.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Hypoactive sexual desire (HSD) is the deficiency of sexual fantasies and desire that should be considered as a disorder if it causes distress to the couple. In the general population, it is the most widespread sexuality-related problem. It is generally accepted that testosterone and prolactin regulate sexual desire. We recently reported that other psychobiological factors associate with HSD in a sample of almost 500 male patients attending our Outpatient Clinic for sexual dysfunction, by using SIEDY structured interview. We now originally extend investigation to a threefold broader patient sample. Considering marital parameters, perceived partner's libido and climax, patient's partner diseases, conflictual or even prolonged couple relationship were all significantly associated with an impairment of patients' sexual desire. Moreover, other lifestyle factors as satisfaction at work and/or domestic inhabitant relationship were significantly correlated to hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD). Among hormonal parameters, severe hyperprolactinaemia (>700 mU/L), although rarely diagnosed (<2.0%), seems to play a greater role than the more common (23%) endocrine disease hypogonadism (testosterone < 12 nm) to the pathogenesis of HSD (RR = 7.5 [2.5-22.4] vs. 1.5 [1.1-1.9], respectively). Both mental disorders and use of medication interfering with sexual function were also significantly associated with HSDD, as well as depressive and anxiety symptoms. Finally, HSD was inversely correlated to sexual and masturbation frequency attempts. In conclusion, HSD is associated with several biological, psychological, and relational factors that can be simultaneously identified and quantified using the SIEDY structured interview.
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Affiliation(s)
- G Corona
- Andrology Unit, Department of Clinical Physiopathology, University of Florence, Florence Italy
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Bao AM, Hestiantoro A, Van Someren EJW, Swaab DF, Zhou JN. Colocalization of corticotropin-releasing hormone and oestrogen receptor-alpha in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus in mood disorders. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2005; 128:1301-13. [PMID: 15705605 DOI: 10.1093/brain/awh448] [Citation(s) in RCA: 132] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
Oestrogens may modulate the activity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. The present study was to investigate whether the activity of the HPA axis in mood disorders might be directly modulated by oestrogens via oestrogen receptors (ORs) in the corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) neurons of the human hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN). Brains of 13 subjects ranging in age between 45 and 79 years suffering from major depression/major depressive disorder (eight cases) or bipolar disorder (five cases) and of 13 controls, matched for sex, age, brain weight, post-mortem delay, fixation time and season and clock time at death, were studied with double-label immunocytochemistry. The total number of CRH-immunoreactive (IR) neurons, CRH neurons that colocalized ORalpha in the neuronal nucleus and the number of only nuclear ORalpha-containing neurons in the PVN were measured using an image analysis system. In addition, the volume of the PVN delineated on the basis of CRH neurons was determined. It was found that the total number of CRH-IR neurons in patients with mood disorders was nearly 1.7 times higher than in controls (P = 0.034). A novel finding was that the total number of CRH-IR neurons and the number of CRH-nuclear ORalpha double-staining neurons in the PVN were strongly correlated both in controls and in patients with mood disorders (P < 0.001 and P = 0.022, respectively). The ratio of the CRH-nuclear-ORalpha double-staining neurons to the total CRH-IR neurons in patients with mood disorders was similar to that in the controls (P = 0.448). The volume of the sub-region of the PVN that was delineated on the basis of CRH neurons was significantly larger in patients with mood disorders than in controls (P = 0.022). Another novel finding was the large population of extra-hypothalamic CRH neurons that was found in the thalamus. In summary, oestrogens may directly influence CRH neurons in the human PVN. The increased numbers of neurons expressing CRH in mood disorders is accompanied by increased ORalpha colocalization in the nucleus of these neurons. These changes seem to be trait- rather than state-related.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ai-Min Bao
- Department of Endocrinology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, Anhui, People's Republic of China
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Garcia-Ovejero D, Azcoitia I, Doncarlos LL, Melcangi RC, Garcia-Segura LM. Glia-neuron crosstalk in the neuroprotective mechanisms of sex steroid hormones. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2005; 48:273-86. [PMID: 15850667 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainresrev.2004.12.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 170] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2004] [Accepted: 12/09/2004] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Proteins involved in the intramitochondrial trafficking of cholesterol, the first step in steroidogenesis, such as the steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (StAR) and the peripheral-type benzodiazepine receptor (PBR), are upregulated in the nervous system after injury. Accordingly, a local increase in the levels of steroids, such as pregnenolone and progesterone, is observed following traumatic injury in the brain and spinal cord. The expression and activity of aromatase, the enzyme that synthesizes estradiol, is also increased in injured brain areas and its inhibition results in an increased neurodegeneration. These findings suggest that an increase in steroidogenesis is part of an overall mechanism used by the nervous tissue to cope with neurodegenerative conditions. Neural steroidogenesis is the result of a coordinated interaction of neurons and glia. For example, after neural injury, there is an upregulation of StAR in neurons and of PBR in microglia and astroglia. Aromatase is expressed in neurons under basal conditions and is upregulated in reactive astrocytes after injury. Some of the steroids produced by glia are neuroprotective. Progesterone and progesterone derivatives produced by Schwann cells, promote myelin formation and the remyelination and regeneration of injured nerves. In the central nervous system, the steroids produced by glia regulate synaptic function, affect anxiety, cognition, sleep and behavior, and exert neuroprotective and reparative roles. In addition, glial cells are targets for steroids and mediate some of the effects of these molecules on neurons, including the regulation of survival and regeneration.
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Correia HR, Balseiro SC, de Areia ML. Are genes of human intelligence related to the metabolism of thyroid and steroids hormones? – Endocrine changes may explain human evolution and higher intelligence. Med Hypotheses 2005; 65:1016-23. [PMID: 16122877 DOI: 10.1016/j.mehy.2005.07.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2005] [Accepted: 07/08/2005] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
We propose the hypothesis that genes of human intelligence are related with metabolism of thyroid and steroids hormones, which have a crucial role in brain development and function. First, there is evidence to support the idea that during hominid evolution small genetic differences were related with significant endocrine changes in thyroid and steroids hormones. Second, these neuroactive hormones are also related with unique features of human evolution such as body and brain size increase, penis and breast enlargement, pelvic sexual dimorphism, active sexuality, relative lack of hair and higher longevity. Besides underling many of the differences between humans and great apes, steroids hormones promote brain growth and development, are important in the myelination process, explain sexual dimorphisms in brain and intelligence and improve specific cognitive abilities in humans. Supporting our hypothesis, recent studies indicate differences in neuroactive hormones metabolism between humans and non-human primates. Furthermore, a link between X chromosome genes and sex steroids may explain why the frequency of genes affecting intelligence is so high on the X chromosome. This association suggests that, during hominid evolution, there was a positive feedback in both sexes on the same genes responsible for secondary sexual character development and intelligence. This interaction leads to acceleration of development of human brain and intelligence. Finally, we propose that neuroactive hormone therapy may provide significant improvement in some cognitive deficits in all stages of human life and in cases of neurodegenerative diseases. However, further investigation is needed, mainly in the enzymatic machinery, in order to understand the direct role of these hormones in intelligence.
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Affiliation(s)
- H R Correia
- Department of Anthropology, University of Coimbra, Rua Paulo Quintela, 329, Lote 7, 3A. 3030 393 Coimbra, Portugal.
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Forlano PM, Deitcher DL, Bass AH. Distribution of estrogen receptor alpha mRNA in the brain and inner ear of a vocal fish with comparisons to sites of aromatase expression. J Comp Neurol 2005; 483:91-113. [PMID: 15672394 DOI: 10.1002/cne.20397] [Citation(s) in RCA: 114] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Among vertebrates, teleost fish have the greatest capacity for estrogen production in the brain. Previously, we characterized the distribution of the estrogen-synthesizing enzyme aromatase in the brain of the midshipman fish. Here, we investigated the distribution of estrogen receptor alpha (ERalpha). A partial cDNA of ERalpha was cloned and used to generate midshipman-specific primers for RT and real-time PCR which identified transcripts in liver and ovary, the CNS, and the sensory epithelium of the main auditory endorgan (sacculus). In situ hybridization revealed abundant expression throughout the preoptic area, a vocal-acoustic site in the hypothalamus, amygdala homologs of the dorsal pallium, the pineal organ, the inner ear, the pituitary, and the ovary. Weaker expression was found in the midbrain's nucleus of the medial longitudinal fasciculus and in the dimorphic vocal motor nucleus. ERalpha expression in the pineal, gonad, and pituitary axis may function to time seasonal abiotic cues to reproductive state, while expression in the vocal motor and auditory systems support neurophysiological evidence for estrogen as a modulator of vocal motor and auditory encoding mechanisms in midshipman fish. While ERalpha is restricted to specific nuclei, aromatase expression is abundant in glial cells throughout the entire forebrain, and high in midbrain and hindbrain - spinal vocal regions. The only site of aromatase-containing neurons is in the peripheral auditory system, where it is localized to ganglion cells in the auditory nerve. Estrogen production proximal to ERalpha-positive neurons may provide for focal sites of estrogen effects on reproductive-, vocal-, and auditory-related neurons.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul M Forlano
- Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853, USA
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