PMID- 9221919
OWN - NLM
STAT- MEDLINE
DCOM- 19970917
LR  - 20190826
IS  - 0169-328X (Print)
IS  - 0169-328X (Linking)
VI  - 47
IP  - 1-2
DP  - 1997 Jul
TI  - Alterations in the estrogen sensitivity of hypothalamic proenkephalin mRNA 
      expression with age and prenatal exposure to alcohol.
PG  - 215-22
AB  - Studies suggest that exposure to alcohol in utero causes reproductive and 
      neuroendocrine deficits in adult female rats. The ventromedial nucleus of the 
      hypothalamus (VMN) is an estrogen-sensitive brain region which is regarded as a 
      primary locus for modulating female reproduction. Proenkephalin (PE) mRNA 
      expression in the VMN is dramatically increased by estrogen and this elevation is 
      thought to be involved in modulating female reproductive behavior and 
      neuroendocrine function. To examine whether prenatal alcohol exposure has 
      long-term effects on the ability of estrogen to influence hypothalamic PE mRNA 
      levels, female rats at 2-3, 6-7 or 15-18 months of age, derived from alcohol- or 
      control-fed dams, were studied. 7 days following ovariectomy, animals received 
      either estrogen or sham treatment for 2 days prior to sacrifice. PE mRNA levels 
      in the VMN and striatum were determined by in situ hybridization histochemistry. 
      Film autoradiogram density, numbers of PE mRNA-expressing cells and exposed 
      silver grains/cell were analyzed. Estrogen treatment increased hybridization 
      density, the number of PE mRNA-expressing cells and PE mRNA (grains) level/cell 
      in the VMN of normal adult female rats. In old rats, estrogen increased the 
      number of PE mRNA-expressing cells without up-regulating PE mRNA grain 
      density/cell. In fetal alcohol-exposed (FAE) female rats, the number of cells 
      that expressed PE mRNA did not increase following estrogen treatment at any age. 
      Elevation of grain density/cell following estrogen was observed in FAE animals 
      but only at 7-8 months of age. Overall, these data indicate that the estrogen 
      responsiveness of PE mRNA expression in the VMN declines with age and, 
      furthermore, prenatal exposure to alcohol blunts estrogen's effects on PE mRNA 
      expression in the adult VMN. These finding may help to explain the mechanisms 
      underlying the loss of reproductive function observed in FAE females.
FAU - Li, Y
AU  - Li Y
AD  - Department of Cell Biology, Neurobiology and Anatomy, Loyola University Chicago, 
      Stritch School of Medicine, Maywood, IL 60153, USA.
FAU - McGivern, R F
AU  - McGivern RF
FAU - Nagahara, A H
AU  - Nagahara AH
FAU - Handa, R J
AU  - Handa RJ
LA  - eng
GR  - AA06478/AA/NIAAA NIH HHS/United States
GR  - AA08696/AA/NIAAA NIH HHS/United States
PT  - Journal Article
PT  - Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.
PL  - Netherlands
TA  - Brain Res Mol Brain Res
JT  - Brain research. Molecular brain research
JID - 8908640
RN  - 0 (Enkephalins)
RN  - 0 (Estrogens)
RN  - 0 (Protein Precursors)
RN  - 0 (RNA, Messenger)
RN  - 0 (proenkephalin)
RN  - 3K9958V90M (Ethanol)
SB  - IM
MH  - Age Factors
MH  - Aging/*drug effects/metabolism
MH  - Animals
MH  - Enkephalins/drug effects/*metabolism
MH  - Estrogens/*pharmacology
MH  - Ethanol/*pharmacology
MH  - Female
MH  - Hypothalamus/*drug effects
MH  - In Situ Hybridization
MH  - Maternal Exposure
MH  - Protein Precursors/drug effects/*metabolism
MH  - RNA, Messenger/drug effects/metabolism
MH  - Rats
MH  - Rats, Sprague-Dawley
EDAT- 1997/07/01 00:00
MHDA- 1997/07/01 00:01
CRDT- 1997/07/01 00:00
PHST- 1997/07/01 00:00 [pubmed]
PHST- 1997/07/01 00:01 [medline]
PHST- 1997/07/01 00:00 [entrez]
AID - S0169-328X(97)00050-8 [pii]
AID - 10.1016/s0169-328x(97)00050-8 [doi]
PST - ppublish
SO  - Brain Res Mol Brain Res. 1997 Jul;47(1-2):215-22. doi: 
      10.1016/s0169-328x(97)00050-8.