# CELL BIOLOGY OF ESTROGEN EFFECTS ON LORDOSIS BEHAVIOR

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT CHICAGO · 1993 · $79,484

## Abstract

The main objective of the present proposal is to determine the cell
biological mechanisms involved in changes in synaptic and dendritic
morphology in the midbrain that accompany estrogen effects on female
reproductive behavior, i.e., lordosis.  The proposed studies focus on the
specific neuronal circuit between the ventromedial nucleus (VMN) of the
hypothalamus and the midbrain central gray (MCG). Estrogen may stimulate
RNA and protein synthetic mechanisms in the VMN, resulting in the
production of a polypeptide, which is packaged in a typical secretory
fashion and transported down axons of VMN neurons to the MCG, where it may
act as a trophic factor in the pathway for lordosis. The proposed trophic
factor may induce biochemical and morphological alterations in synapses and
dendrites in the MCG, which in turn may alter synaptic efficacy and neural
circuitry, respectively. Three aspects of this hypothesis will be
addressed.  One will be to determine whether RNA and protein synthesis in
VMN neurons and axonal transport in VMN axons are required for estrogen-
induced alterations in synaptic morphology in the MCG.  This possibility
will be tested by infusing inhibitors of RNA and protein synthesis or
colchicine, respectively, into the VMN and examining the ultrastructure of
synapses in the MCG of animals which have received subsequent estrogen
treatment. The effect of estrogen on the transport of the potential trophic
factor, prolactin, will be examined using electron microscopic (EM)
immunocytochemistry.  The second will be to examine the morphological and
biochemical mechanisms underlying the estrogen-induced alterations in
synaptic structures in the MCG.  For the morphological studies, the
sequence of estrogen-induced synaptic alterations which may lead to an
increase in synaptic number will the examined by EM. For the biochemical
studies, the dependence on estrogen of the phosphorylation state of
specific proteins in MCG synapses will be examined using subcellular
fractionation techniques, in vitro phosphorylation, and SDS-gel
autoradiography.  The third way will be to determine if estrogen induces a
protein implicated in dendritic development in the MCG (and VMN).
Antibodies to microtubule-associated proteins will be used for EM
immunocytochemistry. Fundamental studies on the morphological and
biochemical correlates of a well-defined mammalian behavior, such as
lordosis, will contribute to an understanding of the neuroendocrine and
cell biological mechanisms involved in other complex behaviors and their
aberrations.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 2199220
- **Project number:** 5R01HD024553-06
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT CHICAGO
- **SAM.gov UEI:** W8XEAJDKMXH3
- **Principal Investigator:** ROCHELLE S. COHEN
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 1993
- **Award amount:** $79,484
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 1989-09-01 → 1995-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/2199220

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 2199220, CELL BIOLOGY OF ESTROGEN EFFECTS ON LORDOSIS BEHAVIOR (5R01HD024553-06). Retrieved via MORVS 2026-10-25 from https://api.morvs.ai/grant/nih/2199220. Licensed CC0.

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