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Updated: Aug 8, 2026

Performing Vaginal Lavage, Crystal Violet Staining, and Vaginal Cytological Evaluation for Mouse Estrous Cycle Staging Identification
Published on: September 15, 2012
Non-ligand activation of estrous behavior in rodents: cross-talk at the progesterone receptor
C Beyer1, O González-Flores, M García-Juárez
1Centro de Investigación en Reproducción Animal, Tlaxcala, Mexico.
Abstract:
Estrous behavior in rodents is triggered by the binding of progesterone (P) to its intracellular receptor (PR). Non-steroidal agents (i.e., gonadotropin-releasing hormone, noradrenaline, dopamine and others), acting at the membrane, can facilitate estrous behavior in estrogen-primed rats. This action is mediated through the generation of second messengers (cyclic AMP, cyclic GMP, calcium) which, in turn, phosphorylate through diverse kinase systems (protein kinases A, G or C) either the PR or associated effector proteins linking the PR to the trans-activation machinery. P or its metabolites also activate cyclic AMP-signaling pathways by acting directly on the membrane or by modulating neurotransmitter release. Molecular processes resulting from second messenger signaling pathways and those from the progesterone-RP interaction synergize to elicit a full behavioral response.
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