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Identification of Dopamine D1-Alpha Receptor Within Rodent Nucleus Accumbens by an Innovative RNA In Situ Detection Technology
Published on: March 27, 2018
Gonadal steroid receptor mRNA in catecholaminergic nuclei of the canary brainstem
D L Maney1, D J Bernard, G F Ball
1Behavioral Neuroendocrinology Group, Department of Psychology, Johns Hopkins University, 3400 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA. maney@jhu.edu
Abstract:
Steroid actions in the song system may be modulated by ascending inputs from catecholaminergic (CA) brain nuclei; however, whether these nuclei contain steroid receptors is unknown. Here, we compared the distribution of androgen receptor (AR) and estrogen receptor-alpha (ER-alpha) mRNA with that of tyrosine hydroxylase immunoreactivity (TH-IR) in the brainstems of male canaries. Areas containing AR and ER-alpha mRNA overlapped with areas containing TH-IR cell bodies in the locus ceruleus and the area ventralis of Tsai. The substantia nigra and the midbrain central gray contained both TH-IR and AR mRNA. The presence of AR and ER-alpha within CA cell groups suggests that sex steroid hormones may modulate song production at the site of CA synthesis.
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