Evidence that serotonin is involved in the sexually dimorphic development of the preoptic area in the rat brain.

R. J. Handa, M. Hines, J. N. Schoonmaker

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

37 Scopus citations

Abstract

To investigate the possibility that serotonin plays a role in the sexually dimorphic development of a nucleus in the medial preoptic area of the rat brain, p-chlorophenylalanine, an inhibitor of serotonin biosynthesis, was administered to pregnant dams from day 8 of gestation until parturition. This treatment did not alter plasma steroid levels but increased the volume of the sexually dimorphic nucleus in female neonates to that of control males. Thus, serotonin is implicated as a neurochemical which may be involved in the sexually dimorphic development of the preoptic area.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)278-282
Number of pages5
JournalBrain Research
Volume395
Issue number2
StatePublished - Dec 1986

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Neuroscience
  • Molecular Biology
  • Clinical Neurology
  • Developmental Biology

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