Spontaneously hypertensive rats are the most common animal
model used to study attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
(ADHD). The present study investigated the levels of steroid
hormones in the bloodstream of hypertensive rats and its
normotensive control strain, Wistar-Kyoto rats, to check if there
are any hormonal differences between both strains at the onset
of ADHD. Plasma samples were collected from young (5-weekold) and mature (10-week-old) male hypertensive and
normotensive rats to determine the serum level of testosterone,
17β-estradiol, free estriol, progesterone, corticosterone and
cortisol using ELISA kits. The results showed statistically
significant increases in serum levels of testosterone and free
estriol in 10-week-old hypertensive and normotensive rats when
compared to 5-week-old animals. Moreover, the concentrations
of progesterone, corticosterone and cortisol were significantly
elevated in 10-week-old hypertensive rats when compared to
5-week-old animals of both strains as well as 10-week-old
normotensive rats. Hormonal differences observed between
10-week-old hypertensive and normotensive rats were also
accompanied by differences in the volumes of lateral ventricles as
well as the third ventricle and cerebral aqueduct. In conclusion,
elevated contents of progesterone, corticosterone and cortisol in
hypertensive rats may be associated not only with ADHD but also
with developing hypertension. This question needs further study.
The aim of the present study was to investigate the distribution and density of noradrenergic nerve fibres (NNFs), content of catecholamines (CATs) and steroids in the cystic ovaries of gilts receiving DXM from middle luteal phase. Cystic status of ovaries was induced by i.m. DXM injections on days 7-21 of the estrous cycle. During the same time, gilts in the control group received saline. The ovaries were collected on predicted day 11 of the second studied estrous cycle. The cystic ovaries were supplied by more numerous NNFs than the control gonads. Moreover after DXM injections, the content of CATs and progesterone and androstendione (A4) in the cystic wall were elevated, while the levels of A4, testosterone and estradiol-17β in the cystic fluid were lowered. Our results show that in the porcine cystic ovaries, induced by DXM injections from middle phase of estrous cycle, increased the density of NNFs and level of CATs, and that it was accompanied by changes in the content of steroids. Moreover, this study is a further confirmation that the morphological and functional changes of cystic ovaries are partly dependent on phase of the estrous cycle in which the induction of the ovarian cysts was initiated., A. Kozłowska, ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje seznam literatury