Influence of substitutive ovarian steroids in the nuclear and cell body volumes of neurons in the posterodorsal medial amygdala of adult ovariectomized female rats
Abstract
The volumes of the neuronal nucleus and the cell body in the left posterodorsal medial amygdala (MePD) of adult ovariectomized (OVX) female rats submitted to different hormonal therapies were studied here, aiming to reveal possible influence of substitutive sex steroids in these morphological parameters. One week following ovariectomy and at the end of treatments, brains were cut to semi-thin sections (1 microm) and stained with 1% toluidine blue for stereological estimations, carried out using the Cavalieri method and the technique of point counting. Both the volume of the neuronal nucleus and the soma showed a statistically significant difference when comparing the data among OVX females treated with vehicle (V), estradiol (EB) alone, EB plus progesterone (EB+P) or P alone [n=5 rats in each group; one-way ANOVA test, P<0.01 in both cases]. The Tukey test showed that OVX and EB+P treated females had higher mean neuronal nucleus and somatic volumes when compared to V (P<0.01) or EB alone (P<0.01). Also, OVX females treated with P alone showed larger mean neuronal nucleus and somatic volumes when compared to V (P<0.05). These results suggest that the neuronal nucleus and the somatic volumes can be modulated by substitutive ovari...Continue Reading
References
Comparative distribution of estrogen receptor-alpha and -beta mRNA in the rat central nervous system
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