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Donna Krupa
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Estrogen Receptor-α
Antisense Decreases Brain Estrogen Receptor Levels and Affects Ventilation
in Male and Female Rats
Report Among the Highlighted
Topics on Gender Differences in the October Edition of the Journal of
Applied Physiology
BETHESDA, Md. -- October 18, 2001 -- The American Physiological
Society (APS) kicks off a special series entitled, “Highlighted Topics on
Gender Differences in Physiology,” beginning with the October 2001 edition
of the Journal of Applied Physiology, the Society’s flagship
publication. The October issue offers the following examination:
Estrogen Receptor-α Antisense
Decreases Brain Estrogen Receptor Levels and Affects Ventilation in Male and
Female Rats
The finding that "Estrogen
receptor-α
antisense decreases brain estrogen receptor levels and
affects ventilation in male and female rats," is the result of an
investigation conducted by
Shashita R. Inamdar, Kathleen M. Eyster, and Evelyn H. Schlenker, all of the
Division of Basic Biomedical Sciences at the University of
South Dakota School of Medicine, Vermillion, SD.
Dr. Inamdar and colleagues explored the effects of estrogen
receptor-α
protein production in the brain of neonatal rats on
the gender-specific ventilatory response to aspartic acid. To determine
whether the activational effects of puberty modified these responses to
aspartic acid the investigators evaluated animals shortly after weanling
(~23 days old) and at adulthood (2-3 months old).
Background, Methodology and Findings
These investigators found that, during the late fetal and early neonatal
period, estrogen receptors are more widely and abundantly expressed compared
with that shown during adulthood. This is of great importance because the
late fetal and early neonatal periods coincide with the critical
developmental period when major organizational changes take place in the
neuronal circuitry of the brain. Thus changes in ER expression during this
stage can influence the growth and pattern of differentiation of the
developing rat brain and may have enduring consequences into adulthood.
A novel molecular technique employed in the present study involves the
use of antisense oligodeoxynucleotide against estrogen receptors. Such
antisense oligodeoxynucleotides are short sequences of DNA or RNA, usually
12-15 bases in length, that are complementary to a specific gene and inhibit
the expression of the gene and thus the protein that would normally be
produced. The investigators found that aspartic acid decreased 65 percent at
six hours and 35 percent at 24 hours after antisense oligodeoxynucleotide
exposure. Weanling estrogen receptor oligodeoxynucleotide-treated rats were
shorter and weighed less than controls. Only adult estrogen receptor
oligodeoxynucleotide-treated males exhibited these traits.
Conclusion
These results indicated that neonatal estrogen receptors affect aspartic
acid modulation of breathing and body growth in a gender-specific and
developmental manner.
-end-
The American Physiological
Society (APS) was founded in 1887 to foster basic and applied science, much
of it relating to human health. The Bethesda, MD-based Society has more than
10,000 members and publishes 3,800 articles in its 14 peer-reviewed journals
every year.
***
Editor’s Note: To receive a copy of the abstracts, to interview speakers or
for more information, contact Donna Krupa at 703.527.7357(direct dial),
703.967.2751 (cell) or djkrupa1@aol.com.
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