Role of Testosterone in the Sexual Dimorphism of Adrenal Activity at Puberty in the Guinea-Pig

Hani, Abdelhamid El; Dalle, M; Delost, P

doi:10.1677/joe.0.0870455

Cited by 20 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…Male guinea pigs are sexually mature by approximately 8 weeks of age (Hennessy et al 2003). Castration of male guinea pigs, rats and hamsters has been shown to increase ACTH and cortisol production as well as CRH and arginine vasopressin (AVP), while androgen replacement reversed this effect (El Hani et al 1980; Viau & Meaney, 1991; Handa et al 1994; McCormick et al 1998). In the present study, we undertook more sophisticated testing of HPA function than in our previous study (Liu et al 2001) by incorporating an additional dexamethasone suppression–CRH challenge test and hourly monitoring of plasma ACTH, cortisol and testosterone concentrations throughout the subjective day.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prenatal glucocorticoid exposure alters hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal function and blood pressure in mature male guinea pigs

Banjanin¹,

Kapoor²,

Matthews

2004

The Journal of Physiology

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Pregnant guinea pigs were treated with dexamethasone (1 mg kg −1 ) or vehicle on days 40-41, 50-51 and 60-61 of gestation, after which animals delivered normally. Adult male offspring were catheterized at 145 days of age and subjected to tests of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis function in basal and activated states. Animals exposed to dexamethasone in utero (mat-dex) exhibited increased hippocampus-to-brain weight ratio, increased adrenal-to-body weight ratio and increased mean arterial pressure. There were no effects on gestation length, birth weight and postnatal growth. There were no overall differences in diurnal plasma adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and cortisol profiles, though there were subtle differences during the subjective afternoon between control and mat-dex offspring. A significant decrease in initial ACTH suppression was observed following dexamethasone injection in mat-dex offspring compared to control offspring. Molecular analysis revealed significantly increased MR mRNA expression in the limbic system and particularly in the dentate gyrus in mat-dex offspring. In the anterior pituitary, both pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) and glucocorticoid receptor (GR) mRNA levels were significantly elevated in mat-dex offspring. In conclusion, (1) repeated prenatal treatment with synthetic glucocorticoid (sGC) permanently programmes organ growth, blood pressure and HPA regulation in mature male offspring and these changes involve modification of corticosteroid receptor expression in the brain and pituitary; (2) the effects of prenatal sGC exposure on HPA function appear to change as a function of age, indicating the importance of investigating HPA and cardiovascular outcome at multiple time points throughout life.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prenatal glucocorticoid exposure alters hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal function and blood pressure in mature male guinea pigs

Banjanin¹,

Kapoor²,

Matthews

2004

The Journal of Physiology

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“…These results suggest that the organizational influence of sex steroids is exerted during the so-called 'androgensensitive period' of development (Gorski 1973, Flerkó 1975, Joseph et al 1985. The effect of circulating sex steroids present after puberty, usually referred to as activational, is considered to reflect the known ability of androgens to blunt corticosteroid secretion in laboratory animals (Kitay 1963, El Hani et al 1980, Smith & Norman 1987. Indeed, gonadectomy significantly augmented IL-1-induced corticosterone release in both male and female rats.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stimulatory effect of interleukin-1β on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis of the rat: influence of age, gender and circulating sex steroids

Rivier

1994

Journal of Endocrinology

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The bilateral communication between the immune and neuroendocrine systems plays an essential role in modulating the adequate response of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis to the stimulatory influence of interleukins (ILs). It is thus reasonable to assume that inappropriate responses of the HPA axis to ILs might play a role in modulating the onset of pathological conditions such as infections. As part of our programme aimed at investigating the ability of ILs to release pro-opiomelanocortin-like peptides and corticosterone in rats exposed to alcohol, we observed that this stimulatory action appeared to be influenced by the gender of the animals. We therefore examined the ability of IL-1 beta, injected peripherally, to stimulate the HPA axis as a function of stage of sexual maturation and the presence or absence of circulating sex steroids. In immature (21 to 22-day-old) rats, both males and females responded to the i.p. administration of 0.5 or 2.0 micrograms IL-1 beta/kg with statistically comparable increases in plasma ACTH levels. In contrast, females released significantly (P < 0.01) more corticosterone in response to the lower dose of cytokine. Forty-day-old intact animals showed no sexual dimorphism in ACTH secretion, but the females again secreted significantly (P < 0.05-0.01) more corticosterone. Gonadectomy, performed 7-8 days prior to the assay, increased the absolute amount of corticosterone released over a 60-min period. A noticeable dimorphism of the ACTH response to IL-1 beta became apparent in 70-day-old intact rats, with females secreting more ACTH than males.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

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“…Furthermore, social interactions with adult animals of both sexes increase T secretion, which agrees with the idea that the reduced stress responsiveness may be mediated via elevated T levels over the course of adolescence. To this point, the evidence for a possible relationship between high T levels and a decreased stress response was only correlative, although inhibiting effects of T on HPA function have been described [96,97]. Therefore, we next investigated whether T indeed had an inhibitory effect on C stress responsiveness during adolescence [95].…”

Section: Rstbroyalsocietypublishingorg Phil Trans R Soc B 368: 2012mentioning

confidence: 99%

Behavioural profiles are shaped by social experience: when, how and why

Sachser

Kaiser

Hennessy

2013

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

138

158

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The comprehensive understanding of individual variation in behavioural profiles is a current and timely topic not only in behavioural ecology, but also in biopsychological and biomedical research. This study focuses on the shaping of behavioural profiles by the social environment in mammals. We review evidence that the shaping of behavioural profiles occurs from the prenatal phase through adolescence and beyond. We focus specifically on adolescence, a sensitive phase during which environmental stimuli have distinctive effects on the modulation of behavioural profiles. We discuss causation, in particular, how behavioural profiles are shaped by social stimuli through behavioural and neuroendocrine processes. We postulate a central role for maternal hormones during the prenatal phase, for maternal behaviour during lactation and for the interaction of testosterone and stress hormones during adolescence. We refer to evolutionary history and attempt to place developmental shaping into broader evolutionary historical trends. Finally, we address survival value. We argue that the shaping of behavioural profiles by environmental stimuli from the prenatal phase through adolescence represents an effective mechanism for repeated and rapid adaptation during the lifetime. Notably, the adolescent phase may provide a last chance for correction if the future environment deviates from that predicted in earlier phases.

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Role of Testosterone in the Sexual Dimorphism of Adrenal Activity at Puberty in the Guinea-Pig

Cited by 20 publications

References 21 publications

Prenatal glucocorticoid exposure alters hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal function and blood pressure in mature male guinea pigs

Prenatal glucocorticoid exposure alters hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal function and blood pressure in mature male guinea pigs

Stimulatory effect of interleukin-1β on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis of the rat: influence of age, gender and circulating sex steroids

Behavioural profiles are shaped by social experience: when, how and why

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