Publications by authors named "Pauline Campos"

Our understanding and management of reproductive health and related disorders such as infertility, menstrual irregularities, and pituitary disorders depend on understanding the intricate sex-specific mechanisms governing prolactin secretion. Using experiments in acute slices, in parallel with calcium imaging (GRIN lens technology), we found that dopamine neurons inhibiting PRL secretion (TIDA), organize as functional networks both in and . We defined an index of efficiency of networking (I) using the duration of calcium events and the ability to form plastic economic networks.

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Detection of circulating TSH is a first-line test of thyroid dysfunction, a major health problem (affecting about 5% of the population) that, if untreated, can lead to a significant deterioration of quality of life and adverse effects on multiple organ systems. Human TSH levels display both pulsatile and (nonpulsatile) basal TSH secretion patterns; however, the importance of these in regulating thyroid function and their decoding by the thyroid is unknown. Here, we developed a novel ultra-sensitive ELISA that allows precise detection of TSH secretion patterns with minute resolution in mouse models of health and disease.

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Central integration of peripheral appetite-regulating signals ensures maintenance of energy homeostasis. Thus, plasticity of circulating molecule access to neuronal circuits involved in feeding behavior plays a key role in the adaptive response to metabolic changes. However, the mechanisms involved remain poorly understood despite their relevance for therapeutic development.

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Reproduction, growth, stress, and metabolism are determined by endocrine/neuroendocrine systems that regulate circulating hormone concentrations. All these systems generate rhythms and changes in hormone pulsatility observed in a variety of pathophysiological states. Thus, the output of endocrine/neuroendocrine systems must be regulated within a narrow window of effective hormone concentrations but must also maintain a capacity for plasticity to respond to changing physiological demands.

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The neural mechanisms generating pulsatile GnRH release from the median eminence (ME) remain unclear. Studies undertaken in the mouse demonstrate that GnRH neurons extend projections to the ME that have properties of both dendrites and axons, termed "dendrons," and that the kisspeptin neuron pulse generator targets these distal dendrons to drive pulsatile GnRH secretion. It presently remains unknown whether the GnRH neuron dendron exists in other species.

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In most species, survival relies on the hypothalamic control of endocrine axes that regulate critical functions such as reproduction, growth, and metabolism. For decades, the complexity and inaccessibility of the hypothalamic-pituitary axis has prevented researchers from elucidating the relationship between the activity of endocrine hypothalamic neurons and pituitary hormone secretion. Indeed, the study of central control of endocrine function has been largely dominated by 'traditional' techniques that consist of studying in vitro or ex vivo isolated cell types without taking into account the complexity of regulatory mechanisms at the level of the brain, pituitary and periphery.

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The discoveries of novel functional adaptations of the hypothalamus and anterior pituitary gland for physiological regulation have transformed our understanding of their interaction. The activity of a small proportion of hypothalamic neurons can control complex hormonal signalling, which is disconnected from a simple stimulus and the subsequent hormone secretion relationship and is dependent on physiological status. The interrelationship of the terminals of hypothalamic neurons and pituitary cells with the vasculature has an important role in determining the pattern of neurohormone exposure.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study investigates patterns of luteinizing hormone (LH) secretion during the mouse estrous cycle using a new bleeding method and sensitive ELISA techniques, revealing consistent pulsatile LH release across various conditions.
  • - Ovariectomized mice showed significantly increased LH secretion, with pulses occurring every 21 minutes, while treatment with estradiol restored pulse frequency to normal levels but maintained higher pulse amplitude.
  • - Transgenic mice with reduced GnRH neuron numbers still exhibited pattern variations in LH secretion, indicating that only a few GnRH neurons are necessary for pulsatile LH release throughout the estrous cycle.
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The mechanisms responsible for generating the pulsatile release of gonadotropins from the pituitary gland are unknown. We develop here a methodology in mice for controlling the activity of the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neurons in vivo to establish the minimal parameters of activation required to evoke a pulse of luteinizing hormone (LH) secretion. Injections of Cre-dependent channelrhodopsin (ChR2)-bearing adeno-associated virus into the median eminence of adult GnRH-Cre mice resulted in the selective expression of ChR2 in hypophysiotropic GnRH neurons.

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Signaling between kisspeptin and its receptor, G-protein-coupled receptor 54 (Gpr54), is now recognized as being essential for normal fertility. However, the key cellular location of kisspeptin-Gpr54 signaling is unknown. Here we create a mouse with a GnRH neuron-specific deletion of Gpr54 to assess the role of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neurons.

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