Galbiati M, Martini L, Melcangi R C
Department of Endocrinology and Center of Excellence on Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Milan, Via Balzaretti 9, 20133, Milan, Italy.
Domest Anim Endocrinol. 2003 Jul;25(1):101-8. doi: 10.1016/s0739-7240(03)00049-3.
The mechanisms through which steroid hormones influence the LHRH system are not completely clarified and still represent a crucial and debated field of research in the neuroendocrine control of reproduction. Several data indicate that glial cells influence the activity of hypothalamic LHRH-secreting neurons, via the release of growth factors. It is now well known that glial cells express different kinds of steroid receptors and consequently may be considered as a target for the action of steroid hormones. To this purpose, the possibility that the effects of steroid hormones on LHRH neurons may be mediated by glial elements has been taken in consideration and observations supporting this hypothesis have been reported and discussed here. The results so far obtained strongly suggest that steroid hormones and growth factors, in order to exert their modulatory actions on LHRH dynamic, act in an integrated manner at the level of hypothalamic astrocytes.
甾体激素影响促性腺激素释放激素（LHRH）系统的机制尚未完全阐明，仍是生殖神经内分泌控制领域中一个关键且存在争议的研究方向。多项数据表明，神经胶质细胞通过释放生长因子来影响下丘脑分泌LHRH的神经元的活性。如今众所周知，神经胶质细胞表达不同种类的甾体受体，因此可被视为甾体激素作用的靶点。为此，人们已考虑甾体激素对LHRH神经元的作用可能由神经胶质成分介导这一可能性，本文报道并讨论了支持这一假说的观察结果。目前所获结果有力地表明，甾体激素和生长因子为了对LHRH动态变化发挥调节作用，在下丘脑星形胶质细胞水平以整合的方式发挥作用。
