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New roles for neuronal estrogen receptors
Author(s) -
Lu C.L.,
Herndon C.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
neurogastroenterology and motility
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.489
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1365-2982
pISSN - 1350-1925
DOI - 10.1111/nmo.13121
Subject(s) - gper , estrogen receptor , estrogen , receptor , biology , hormone , estrogen receptor beta , endocrinology , medicine , signal transduction , neuroscience , nuclear receptor , transcription factor , microbiology and biotechnology , gene , genetics , cancer , breast cancer
Estrogens encompass steroid hormones which display physiological roles not only in the female reproductive system but also in other organ systems of non‐reproductive controls, including the peripheral and central nervous systems. Traditionally, estrogen signals in neurons through a “genomic pathway”: binding to estrogen receptors ( ER s) which then interact with nuclear estrogen response elements to initiate transcription. This effect is usually delayed at onset (within several hours to days) and prolonged in duration. In addition to these classical ER s, recent data suggest that other ER s function through pregenomic signaling pathways. Estrogen's pregenomic pathways cause intracellular changes within seconds to minutes and go through a novel, 7‐transmembrane spanning G protein‐coupled receptor ( GPER , formerly known as GPR 30). In this review, we will briefly cover the cellular and molecular mechanisms of GPER and then discuss newly discovered roles of GPER in cognition, depression, homeostasis, pain processing, and other associated neuronal functions.