The vertebrate hypothalamo-pituitary-gonadal axis is the anatomical framework responsible for reproductive competence and species propagation. Essential to the coordinated actions of this three-tiered biological system is the fact that the regulatory inputs ultimately converge on the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neuronal system, which in rodents primarily resides in the preoptic/hypothalamic region. In this short review we will focus on: (1) the general embryonic temporal and spatial development of the rodent GnRH neuronal system, (2) the origin(s) of GnRH neurons, and (3) which transcription - and growth factors have been found to be critical for GnRH neuronal ontogenesis and cellular fate-specification. Moreover, we ask the question whether the molecular and cellular mechanisms involved in GnRH neuronal development may also play a role in the development of other hypophyseal secreting neuroendocrine cells in the hypothalamus.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3712253 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2013.00089 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Effect of a GnRH injection on kisspeptin levels in girls with suspected precocious puberty: a randomized-controlled pilot study.
J Pediatr Endocrinol Metab
January 2025
Department of Paediatrics, School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden.
Objectives: Kisspeptin plays a major role in the onset of puberty by stimulating the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neurons. The aim of this study was to investigate whether GnRH inhibits kisspeptin secretion via a negative feedback mechanism and potential associations between kisspeptin levels and other hormones of importance for pubertal onset.
Methods: Thirteen girls with suspected central precocious puberty underwent a GnRH stimulation test twice in a randomized, placebo-controlled manner.
Identification of puberty related miRNAs in the hypothalamus of female mice.
Mol Cell Endocrinol
January 2025
Department of Molecular Genetics, Function and Therapy, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus. Electronic address:
Background And Aims: Puberty is a crucial developmental stage marked by the transition from childhood to adulthood, organized by complex hormonal signaling within the neuroendocrine system. The hypothalamus, a central region in this system, regulates pubertal functions through the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis. Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neurons, essential in puberty control, release GnRH in a pulsatile manner, initiating the production of sex hormones.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGenetics and Epigenetics of Human Pubertal Timing: The Contribution of Genes Associated With Central Precocious Puberty.
J Endocr Soc
January 2025
Cellular and Molecular Endocrinology Laboratory LIM/25, Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Clinicas Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Sao Paulo, 01246-903 Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Human puberty is a dynamic biological process determined by the increase in the pulsatile secretion of GnRH triggered by distinct factors not fully understood. Current knowledge reveals fine tuning between an increase in stimulatory factors and a decrease in inhibitory factors, where genetic and epigenetic factors have been indicated as key players in the regulation of puberty onset by distinct lines of evidence. Central precocious puberty (CPP) results from the premature reactivation of pulsatile secretion of GnRH.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFKisspeptin as a test of hypothalamic dysfunction in pubertal and reproductive disorders.
Andrology
January 2025
Section of Endocrinology and Investigative Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK.
The hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis is regulated by the gonadotropin-releasing hormone pulse generator in the hypothalamus. This is comprised of neurons that secrete kisspeptin in a pulsatile manner to stimulate the release of GnRH, and, in turn, downstream gonadotropins from the pituitary gland, and subsequently sex steroids and gametogenesis from the gonads. Many reproductive disorders in both males and females are characterized by hypothalamic dysfunction, including functional disorders (such as age-related hypogonadism, obesity-related secondary hypogonadism, hyperprolactinemia, functional hypothalamic amenorrhea and polycystic ovary syndrome), structural pathologies (such as craniopharyngiomas or radiation or surgery-related hypothalamic dysfunction), and pubertal disorders (constitutional delay of growth and puberty and congenital hypogonadotropic hypogonadism).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFKisspeptin and Neurokinin B: roles in reproductive health.
Physiol Rev
January 2025
Department of Investigative Medicine, Imperial College London, Hammersmith Hospital, London, United Kingdom.
Kisspeptin and neurokinin B (NKB) play a key role in several physiological processes including in puberty, adult reproductive function including the menstrual cycle, as well as mediating the symptoms of menopause. Infundibular kisspeptin neurons, which co-express NKB, regulate the activity of gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) neurons, and thus the physiological pulsatile secretion of GnRH from the hypothalamus. Outside of their hypothalamic reproductive roles, these peptides are implicated in several physiological functions including sexual behavior and attraction, placental function, and bone health.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWant AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!