Abstract
Cerebral concentrations of 5-hydroxytryptamine, noradrenaline, dopamine, tryptophan and tyrosine in ovariectomised rats have been measured following the acute administration of ethinyloestradiol and progesterone, alone and in combination. As a preliminary to the study of discrete areas, the brains were divided into three portions: the cortex, the mid-brain and the hind-brain. Both ethinyloestradiol and progesterone elevated noradrenaline and dopamine concentrations in the cortex, but decreased mid-brain concentrations. Progesterone significantly increased 5-hydroxytryptamine concentrations in the mid- and hindbrain; there was also some evidence of an increase in the cortex. The authors speculate on the relevance of these findings to rat sexual behaviour, and on the possibility that oestrogen and progesterone levels may be implicated in some affective disorders in humans.
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Tonge, S.R., Greengrass, P.M. The acute effects of oestrogen and progesterone on the monoamine levels of the brain of ovariectomised rats. Psychopharmacologia 21, 374–381 (1971). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02419060
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02419060