Abstract
Summary
In 65% of constant estrous an-ovulatory (CEA) rats bearing a frontal hy-pothalamic deafferentation (FHD), ovulation reappears after pinealectomy or bilateral superior cervical ganglionectomy. In nearly 50% of the FHD rats which ovulated after pinealectomy or ganglionectomy, serum LH showed an elevation on the day of “vaginal proestrus.” In the remaining 50% of the animals, ovulation occurred without observable variations in serum LH concentrations. The LH peak was probably missed in these animals because insufficient numbers of blood samples were collected. The data suggest that pinealectomy and cervical sympathectomy may induce LH release. It is proposed that this occurs through an interference with the hypothalamic and brain stem serotoninergic system which normally keeps LH under an inhibitory tone.
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