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Up Regulation of Estrogen Receptor alpha in ob/ob and Agouti Mice
Author(s) -
Chakraborty Sanjoy,
Boyer Amy,
Yakov Tomer,
Jadrayeva Saltanat
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.22.1_supplement.823.20
Subject(s) - medicine , endocrinology , leptin , arcuate nucleus , leptin receptor , estrogen receptor , hypothalamus , estrogen receptor alpha , estrogen , biology , hormone , receptor , appetite , nucleus , obesity , microbiology and biotechnology , cancer , breast cancer
Increase in obesity is associated with reproductive failure. Estrogen levels affect reproduction and regulates appetite and food intake. Estrogen acts via its two receptors ERα and ERβ. ERα is necessary to maintain normal food intake, body weight and adiposity. Leptin plays a central role in regulating feeding behavior. The present study was undertaken to assess the hypothalamic distribution of ERα and ERβ in leptin‐deficient, obese, infertile ob/ob mice and infertile, obese, A y /a agouti mice with high circulating leptin levels, in comparison to control mice. ERα‐immunoreactive cells in the arcuate nucleus and ERβ in the paraventricular nucleus were quantified. Stereologic analysis showed that there were significantly higher numbers of ERα‐immunoreactive cells in ob/ob mice irrespective of sex. Ovariectomy in female wild type mice caused a 50% increase ERα‐immunoreactive cells. The number of ERβ cells was the same among all the groups in both ARH and PVN. The difference in the number of ERα‐immunoreactive cells in A y /a and ob/ob mice most likely does not reflect a decrease in circulating gonadal steroid hormones but most probably the acyclicity in there release. Our results suggest that although leptin and estrogen act via neuronal circuits to affect reproduction, neuroendocrine and behavioral processes, that circulating leptin may not directly regulate ERα levels in the hypothalamic arcuate neurons.