Morrell J I, Krieger M S, Pfaff D W
Exp Brain Res. 1986;62(2):343-54. doi: 10.1007/BF00238854.
These experiments were done to compare quantitatively, on a cell-by-cell basis, estradiol retention by cells in the medial preoptic area, arcuate nucleus, ventrolateral subdivision of the ventromedial nucleus, and the caudal half of the medial nucleus of the amygdala. The steroid autoradiograms were prepared from 2 mu sections of brains from ovariectomized, adrenalectomized adult female rats that had been infused intravenously with [3H] estradiol (E2) in a regimen which kept circulating hormone concentration at or above proestrus levels for 3-4 h. Even in these brain regions, containing the most dense collections of E2-concentrating cells, a maximum of only 27-61% of the cells concentrated E2. Therefore, in these regions only a particular subset of the cells retain hormone; other cells in the region do not retain hormone. Frequency distribution histograms of the number of grains per cell versus the number of cells in each region showed a wide range in the amount of E2 retained per cell, and no modes among E2-retaining cells. The data followed a distribution markedly different from that predicted by a simple Poisson distribution, confirming that E2-retention does not result from a random, passive process such as diffusion. The overall quantitative characteristics of the frequency distribution histograms were similar across the four brain areas. Therefore, we propose that the different E2-sensitive functions of these brain areas must depend on differences in the neural connectivity or differences in hormone regulated peptide content of the areas.
进行这些实验是为了在逐个细胞的基础上，定量比较内侧视前区、弓状核、腹内侧核腹外侧亚区以及杏仁核内侧核尾侧半区的细胞对雌二醇的保留情况。类固醇放射自显影片是由去卵巢、去肾上腺的成年雌性大鼠的脑2微米切片制备而成，这些大鼠通过静脉注射[3H]雌二醇（E2），注射方案使循环激素浓度在3 - 4小时内保持在发情前期水平或以上。即使在这些含有最密集的E2浓缩细胞群的脑区，最多也只有27% - 61%的细胞浓缩了E2。因此，在这些区域中只有特定的细胞亚群保留激素；该区域的其他细胞不保留激素。每个区域中每个细胞的颗粒数与细胞数的频率分布直方图显示，每个细胞保留的E2量有很大差异，且在保留E2的细胞中没有明显的模式。数据呈现出与简单泊松分布预测的分布明显不同的分布，证实E2保留不是由扩散等随机、被动过程导致的。四个脑区频率分布直方图的总体定量特征相似。因此，我们提出这些脑区不同的E2敏感功能必定取决于这些区域神经连接性的差异或激素调节肽含量的差异。
