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Updated: Jun 18, 2026
Performing Vaginal Lavage, Crystal Violet Staining, and Vaginal Cytological Evaluation for Mouse Estrous Cycle Staging Identification
Published on: September 15, 2012
Variations of pre-prosomatostatin MRNA levels in the hypothalamic periventricular nucleus during the rat estrous
R Zorilla1, J Simard, F Labrie
1MRC Group in Molecular Endocrinology, CHUL Research Center, 2705 Laurier Boulevard, Quebec, Quebec, Canada GlV 4G2.
Abstract:
Cellular levels of pre-prosomatostatin (pre-proSS) mRNA were measured by quantitative in situ hybridization in sections through the hypothalamic periventricular nucleus in female rats examined at different times of the estrous cycle. Pre-proSS mRNA levels were lowest on the afternoon of diestrus. They increased progressively and were nearly twofold in the afternoon of the proestrus. They remained high during the day of the estrus and declined in metestrus. These data suggest that somatostatin synthesis in the periventricular nucleus is modulated by variations in the circulating levels of ovarian steroids in the female rat.
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