Paul M. Forlano, David L. Deitcher, Andrew H. Bass (2005): Distribution of
estrogen receptor alpha mRNA in the brain and inner ear of a vocal fish with
comparisons to sites of aromatase expression. The Journal of Comparative
Neurology, 483(1), 91-113
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 (ER). A partial cDNA of ER 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 vocalacoustic 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. ER 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 ER 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 ER-positive neurons may provide for
focal sites of estrogen effects on reproductive-, vocal-, and
auditory-related neurons.
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Sincerly
Sonja Amoser
Sonja Amoser, PhD Student
University of Vienna, Department of Behavior, Neurobiology and Cognition
Althanstrasse 14, 1090 Vienna, Austria
Phone: +43-1-4277-54467 oder +43-664-5006106 (private)
Fax: +43-1-4277-54506
email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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