Abstract
The purpose of the following study was to assess the changes in the proestrous hormone profile in middle-aged cycling rats to better understand the inter-relationship and possible interaction of these hormones during the transition to estrous acyclicity. Median eminence LHRH concentrations and serum LH, FSH, estradiol and progesterone concentrations were measured in young (3-4 months old) and middle-aged (8-10 months old) proestrous rats at 0900, 1200, 1500 and 1800h. The data demonstrate that (1) baseline hormone concentrations prior to the surge at 0900h are the same in middle-aged and young rats; (2) the proestrous gonadotropin surge is temporally delayed in middle-aged rats; (3) this delay is preceded by lower median eminence LHRH concentrations and serum estradiol concentrations at 1200h; (4) serum progesterone concentrations are lower in middle-aged rats during the preovulatory gonadotropin surge (at 1500 and 1800h) probably as a consequence of the delayed LH surge.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 165-173 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| Journal | Life Sciences |
| Volume | 31 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jul 12 1982 |
| Externally published | Yes |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology(all)
- Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics(all)