Effects of Sex Steroids on Dopamine Neurons in Cultured Hypothalamus and Preoptic Area Cells Derived from Neonatal Rats

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The effect of sex steroids on the preoptic area and hypothalamic dopamine neurons derived from neonatal rats within 12 hr after birth was studied in primary culture. Testosterone or estradiol-17β was transiently added to the culture medium, and the cellular and medium dopamine contents were measured by an electrochemical detector connected with HPLC. Addition of testosterone (1 nM) for 3 days from day 2 of culture significantly increased cellular dopamine content and greatly increased medium dopamine concentration in the hypothalamic culture at day 14 of culture. Estradiol-17β (1 nM) for 3 days from day 2 of culture also greatly increased medium dopamine concentration at day 14, but it did not alter cellular dopamine content in the hypothalamic culture. Neither testosterone nor estradiol-17β altered the dopamine levels in the culture of the preoptic area cells. These results suggest that the property of cultured hypothalamic dopamine neurons was irreversibly altered by transient treatment with testosterone or estradiol-17β, while that of cultured preoptic dopamine neurons was not affected.
1994-08-15