| Within the central nervous system, the steroid hormone estradiol was initially characterized as a key mediator of events underlying reproduction and sexual maturation. However, recent evidence supports a role for estradiol in a diverse array of brain functions including learning and memory, pain perception and motor control. Unlike the classical effects of estradiol which are defined by estrogen binding to intracellular receptors leading to the regulation of transcription via interaction with estrogen response elements, the novel or nongenomic actions of estradiol occur rapidly and are thought to be initiated at the neuronal membrane surface. Although estradiol has been demonstrated to influence a variety of behaviors through these nongenomic actions, significant controversy remains regarding the mechanism by which these rapid, membrane-initiated events occur. The purpose of this dissertation research was to fully characterize the rapid actions of estradiol upon hippocampal neuronal function. |
