Development of rat female genital cortex and control of female puberty by sexual touch.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Lenschow C
PROVIDER: S-EPMC5608169 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Sep
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Development of rat female genital cortex and control of female puberty by sexual touch.
Lenschow Constanze C Sigl-Glöckner Johanna J Brecht Michael M
PLoS biology 20170921 9
Rat somatosensory cortex contains a large sexually monomorphic genital representation. Genital cortex undergoes an unusual 2-fold expansion during puberty. Here, we investigate genital cortex development and female rat sexual maturation. Ovariectomies and estradiol injections suggested sex hormones cause the pubertal genital cortex expansion but not its maintenance at adult size. Genital cortex expanded by thalamic afferents invading surrounding dysgranular cortex. Genital touch was a dominant f ...[more]
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Project description:IntroductionFemale Genital Sexual Arousal Disorder (FGSAD) seriously affects women's quality of life and Sexual life, but it still lacks ideal FGSAD animal models for further study.AimTo establish a specific model of female genital sexual arousal disorder and explore the mechanisms resulting in FGSAD.MethodsAfter delivery, female rats were guided by expansions of the vagina and ovariectomy (VD+OVX, n = 10); in VD group female rats were just extended by the vagina (VD, n = 10), in OVX group female rats were treated with ovariectomy (OVX, n = 10);the remaining had 1 longitudinal incision as sham group(n = 10).OutcomesVaginal dilatation combined with ovariectomy in rats may reflect female genital sexual arousal disorder with high reproducibility and stability.ResultsVaginal tissue of female rats in OVX group and VD+OVX group showed an increase in blood flow, decrease in muscle content compared to the sham group. The proportion of collagen fiber I/III decreased and the elastic fiber showed significant rupture and fragmentation; Structural reticular integrity was also significantly separated and broken from the muscle fibers. However, there was no significant difference in vaginal blood flow, fibers and vascular between VD group and Sham group. The damage of vaginal tissue in VD+OVX group was more significant than that in OVX and VD groups.Clinical translationWe have constructed a specific animal model that can provide clinical insights into the mechanism of FGSAD and serves as a good avenue for further research of its treatment.Strengths and limitationsVaginal dilatation combined with ovariectomy in rats is a specific animal model with high reproducibility and stability, but we do acknowledge the shortcomings and limitation present in our study. Since genital arousal disorder has many different etiologies that impact the vagina, the clitoris and surrounding tissues, there is no "gold standard" model that different models attempt to investigate different etiologies.ConclusionThe female genital sexual arousal disorder model established by vaginal dilatation combined with ovariectomy is a novel rat model with simple induction conditions, which pathogenic mechanism of female genital sexual arousal disorders maybe connected with the change of VEGF and MMP-9 in vaginal fibromuscular system and microvascular. Li G, Yu P, Hu Y, et al. Establishment of Rat Model of Female Genital Sexual Arousal Disorder. Sex Med 2022;10:100530.
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Project description:To determine the global changes in hypothalamic gene expression that may occur at the time of female puberty in this species, animals were euthanized at three different stages, juvenile (25-days of age), early puberty (30-35 days of age) and on the day of the first proestrus (32-37 days of age). According to criteria previously established (Ojeda,S.R.; Urbanski,H.F. Puberty in the rat pp.363-409. The Physiology of Reproduction, 2nd Edition, Vol 2. Edited by Knobil,E.; Neill,J.D. Raven Press, 1994), 25-day-old animals are in the mid- juvenile phase of prepubertal development (JUV). At this time, the vagina is not yet patent and the uterine weight is 60 mg or less, with no accumulation of intrauterine fluid. Older rats showing a closed vagina, accumulation of intrauterine fluid and an uterine weight less that 180 mg are considered to be in the early proestrous (EP) phase of puberty. Finally, rats still exhibiting a closed vagina, but showing a uterus ballooned with fluid and a uterine weight of at least 200 mg are considered to be in late proestrus (LP), i.e., the phase of puberty when the first preovulatory surge of LHRH and gonadotropins takes place. The first ovulation occurs the following day. All animals were sacrificed between 1600-1700 h, and the medial basal hypothalamus (MBH) was immediately dissected, as previously described (Rogers,L.C.; Junier,M-P.; Farmer,S.R.; Ojeda,S.R. A sex-related difference in the developmental expression of class II -tubulin messenger RNA in rat hypothalamus. Mol.Cell.Neurosci., 2: 130-138, 1991) and stored in RNAlater according to manufacturer’s instructions. Keywords: comparison between Early pubertal and Juvenile or Late pubertal and Juvenile stages of sexual development in the female rat
2007-06-27 | GSE8310 | GEO
Project description:Pleasurable touch is paramount during social behavior, including sexual encounters. However, the identity and precise role of sensory neurons that transduce sexual touch remain unknown. A population of sensory neurons labeled by developmental expression of the G protein-coupled receptor Mrgprb4 detects mechanical stimulation in mice. Here, we study the social relevance of Mrgprb4-lineage neurons and reveal that these neurons are required for sexual receptivity and sufficient to induce dopamine release in the brain. Even in social isolation, optogenetic stimulation of Mrgprb4-lineage neurons through the back skin is sufficient to induce a conditioned place preference and a striking dorsiflexion resembling the lordotic copulatory posture. In the absence of Mrgprb4-lineage neurons, female mice no longer find male mounts rewarding: sexual receptivity is supplanted by aggression and a coincident decline in dopamine release in the nucleus accumbens. Together, these findings establish that Mrgprb4-lineage neurons initiate a skin-to-brain circuit encoding the rewarding quality of social touch.
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