Journal of Neuroscience, Vol 2, 1439-1445, Copyright © 1982 by Society for Neuroscience
Estradiol receptor levels in rat hypothalamic and limbic nuclei
TC Rainbow, B Parsons, NJ MacLusky and BS McEwen
The amount of cytoplasmic receptor for the steroid hormone, estradiol (E2),
was determined in 46 nuclei and subdivisions of rat brain. Individual
nuclei were removed from 300-micrometers frozen sections according to the
punch-out method of Palkovits (Palkovits, M. (1973) Brain Res. 59:
449-450), and the content of E2 receptor was measured with a sensitive
radioligand binding method. Cytoplasmic receptors for E2 were distributed
heterogeneously throughout the rat brain. The highest level of receptor (40
fmol/mg of protein) was found in the periventricular nucleus of the
preoptic area, while low (1 fmol/mg) but detectable levels of receptors
were found in such limbic regions as the nucleus of the diagonal band, the
olfactory tubercle, and the cingulate cortex. Regions that were devoid of
detectable receptor included the medial septum, the parietal cortex, and
the ventral thalamus. Our results support the notion that E2 influences
reproductive behavior and neuroendocrine function by binding to receptors
in discrete areas of the brain and provide the first quantitative map of E2
receptors in individual rat brain nuclei.