Endocrine Abstracts

The gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neurons are key cells regulating fertility in all mammals including humans. They release GnRH in an episodic manner to drive the pulsatile secretion of luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone critical for gonadal function. Remarkably, the GnRH neurons are not born in the brain but arise from the nose and migrate into the brain during early embryogenesis. This unique origin engenders a variety of unusual and unique pro...

Fertility is critically dependent upon episodic gonadotropin hormone secretion. Recent studies using genetic mouse models have identified that a population of kisspeptin neurons located in the arcuate nucleus (ARN) represent the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) pulse generator in both males and females. These cells exhibit abrupt periods of synchronised activity for 1-2 min that, in turn, activate GnRH neuron processes to release GnRH over a similar time scale to drive pu...

The recent discovery of the importance of kisspeptin-GPR54 signaling to the onset of puberty in humans has generated intense interest in understanding the mechanisms and pathways of kisspeptin-GPR54 signaling at the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neurons. Using transgenic mouse models, electrophysiology and immunocytochemistry we have shown that kisspeptin strongly activates adult GnRH neurons and that these cells receive a direct input from kisspeptin neurons located i...