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Fasting results in the mobilization of adipose stores and the elevation of levels of free fatty acids (FFA). In humans, this process is driven by a release in GH. Little is known regarding the role of GH in modulating this process during early stages of fasting in the mouse. Confirmation of the role of GH in modulating FFA release in the fasting mouse is of particular importance given the frequent use of mouse models to study metabolic mechanisms. Here, we correlate the initial release of FFA throughout fasting in mice with pulsatile GH secretion. Observations illustrate the rapid release of FFA in response to food withdrawal. This does not correlate with a rise in GH secretion. Rather, we observed a striking loss in pulsatile secretion of GH throughout the first 6 h of fasting, suggesting that GH does not modulate the initial release of FFA in the mouse in response to fasting. This was confirmed in GH receptor knockout mice, in which we observed a robust fasting-induced rise in FFA. We further illustrate the dynamic relationship between the orexigenic and anorexigenic hormones ghrelin and leptin during fasting in the mouse. Our findings show an initial suppression of leptin and the eventual rise in circulating levels of acyl-ghrelin with fasting. However, altered acyl-ghrelin and leptin secretion occurs well after the rise in FFA and the suppression of GH secretion. Consequently, we conclude that although acyl-ghrelin and leptin may modulate the physiological response to drive food intake, these changes do not contribute to the initial loss of pulsatile GH secretion. Rather, it appears that the suppression of GH secretion in fasting may occur in response to an elevation in fasting levels of FFA or physiological stress. Observations highlight a divergent role for GH in modulating FFA release between man and mouse.

In adults, the adipocyte-derived hormone, leptin, regulates food intake and body weight principally via the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus (ARC). During early postnatal development, leptin functions to promote the outgrowth of neuronal projections from the ARC, whereas a selective insensitivity to the effects of leptin on food intake appears to exist. To investigate the mechanisms underlying the inability of leptin to regulate food intake during early development, leptin signaling was analyzed both in vitro using primary cultures of rat embryonic ARC neurones and in vivo by challenging early postnatal rats with leptin. In neuronal cultures, despite the presence of key components of the leptin signaling pathway, no detectable activation of either signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 or the MAPK pathways by leptin was detected. However, leptin down-regulated mRNA levels of proopiomelanocortin and neuropeptide Y and decreased somatostatin secretion. Leptin challenge in vivo at postnatal d (P) 7, P14, P21, and P28 revealed that, in contrast to adult and P28 rats, mRNA levels of neuropeptide Y, proopiomelanocortin, agouti-related peptide and cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript were largely unaffected at P7, P14, and P21. Furthermore, leptin stimulation increased the suppressor of cytokine signaling-3 mRNA levels at P14, P21, and P28 in several hypothalamic nuclei but not at P7, indicating that selective leptin insensitivity in the hypothalamus is coupled to developmental shifts in leptin receptor signaling. Thus, the present study defines the onset of leptin sensitivity in the regulation of energy homeostasis in the developing hypothalamus.

Numerous physiological studies as well as in situ hybridization and PCR experiments concur in reporting a role for the sst2A receptor in transducing somatostatin (SRIF) actions in the rat hypothalamus. However, the distribution of this receptor protein is not known within this structure. Regional and cellular localization of the sst2A receptor was therefore examined in the rat hypothalamus using highly sensitive immunohistochemical techniques. In close correspondence with the distribution of SRIF-immunoreactive fibers, numerous hypothalamic areas displayed sst2A receptor immunoreactivity. Receptor labeling was, however, diffusely distributed over the tissue, and few immunopositive cells were apparent. Unraveling the distribution of receptor-expressing cells was achieved through acute in vivo agonist stimulation and subsequent receptor internalization. At the cellular level, double-immunolabeling experiments with synaptophysin and microtubule-associated protein 2 demonstrated that sst2A receptors were predominantly internalized in perikarya and dendrites. Double-labeling experiments with SRIF revealed that 93% of arcuate, but only 18% of periventricular, SRIF-positive neurons expressed internalized receptors. Taken together, these results demonstrate for the first time that the sst2A receptor protein is widely, but selectively, distributed in the hypothalamus, and that postsynaptic sst2A auto- and heteroreceptors are well poised to play an important role in the somatostatinergic regulation of hypothalamic endocrine and metabolic processes.

Ghrelin, an endogenous ligand for the GHS receptor, stimulates GH secretion and gastrointestinal motility and has orexigenic effects. In this study, the relationships between ghrelin, GH secretion, feeding behavior, and sleep-wake patterns were investigated in adult male rats. The half-life of exogenous ghrelin (10 microg i.v.) in plasma was about 30 min. Repeated administration of ghrelin at 3- to 4-h intervals (one during lights-on and two during lights-off periods) increased GH release and feeding activity, and decreased rapid eye movement sleep duration. Endogenous plasma ghrelin levels exhibited pulsatile variations that were smaller and less regular compared with those of GH. No significant correlation between GH and ghrelin circulating levels was found, although mean interpeak intervals and pulse frequencies were close for the two hormones. In contrast, ghrelin pulse variations were correlated with food intake episodes in the lights off period, and plasma ghrelin concentrations decreased by 26% in the 20 min following the end of the food intake periods. A positive correlation between ghrelin levels and active wake was found during the first 3 h of the dark period only. In conclusion, ghrelin, in addition to affecting GH secretion, gastrointestinal motility, and feeding activity, also modifies sleep-wake patterns. However, a direct action of ghrelin per se or the indirect effects of feeding (and all of its attendant metabolic sequelae) on sleep cannot be differentiated. Moreover, ghrelin secretion is pulsatile and directly related to feeding behavior only.

Ghrelin is a gut hormone processed from the proghrelin peptide acting as the endogenous ligand of the GH secretagogue receptor 1a. The regulatory role of endogenous ghrelin on pulsatile GH secretion and linear growth had to be established. The aim of the present study was to delineate the endogenous actions of preproghrelin on peripheral and central components of the GH axis. Accordingly, the ultradian pattern of GH secretion was measured in young and old preproghrelin-deficient males. Blood samples were collected by tail bleeding every 10 minutes over a period of 6 hours. Analysis of the GH pulsatile pattern by deconvolution showed that GH was secreted in an ultradian manner in all genotypes, with major secretory peaks occurring at about 3-hour intervals. In older mice, the peak number was reduced and secretion was less irregular compared with younger animals. Remarkably, in young Ghrl−/− mice, the amplitude of GH secretory bursts was significantly reduced. In older mice, however, genotype differences were less significant. Changes in GH pulsatility in young Ghrl−/− mice were associated with a tendency for reduced GH pituitary contents and plasma IGF-I concentrations, but with only a minor impact on linear growth. In Ghrl+/− mice, despite reduced Acyl ghrelin to des-acyl ghrelin ratio, GH secretion was not impaired. Ghrelin deficiency was not associated with a reduction in hypothalamic GHRH content or altered response to GHRH stimulation. Therefore, reduction in GHRH production and/or sensitivity do not primarily account for the altered GH pulsatile secretion of young Ghrl−/− mice. Instead, GHRH expression was elevated in young but not old Ghrl−/− mice, suggesting that differential compensatory responses resulting from the absence of endogenous ghrelin is occurring according to age. These results show that endogenous ghrelin is a regulator of GH pulse amplitude in growing mice but does not significantly modulate linear growth.

Aging of the rat pituitary is often accompanied by the occurrence of adenomas. We asked whether complementary DNA hybridization array was adapted to identify gene expression patterns linked to aging and associated spontaneous adenomas. Thus, [32P]dATP-labeled cDNAs were prepared from pituitaries of three month-old rats (Y) and tumor-bearing 20-28-month-old rats (OT). The cDNAs were hybridized to identical membrane arrays allowing to study simultaneously 588 known genes (Clontech 7738-1). Among the 79 genes detected, the GH gene was predominantly expressed in both groups. Twenty-eight genes in the OT group and 15 in the Y group were found to be expressed at a higher level. The largest differences were of about 17 fold and were observed for the galanin and glutathione S transferase genes in the Y and OT groups, respectively. Relative RT-PCR was applied to validate the OT versus Y expression pattern obtained via cDNA array hybridization. The results were consistent for 14 out the 15 genes tested. In the light of these results, differential membrane array hybridization appears suitable to identify gene expression profiles associated with pituitary aging.

Five somatostatin (SRIH) receptors (sst1–5) have been cloned. Recent anatomical evidence suggests that sst1 and sst2 may be involved in the central regulation of GH secretion. Given the lack of specific receptor antagonists, we used selective antisense oligodeoxynucleotides (ODNs) to test the hypothesis that one or both of these subtypes are involved in the intrahypothalamic network regulating pulsatile GH secretion. In mouse neuronal hypothalamic cultures the proportion of GHRH neurons coexpressing sst1 or sst2 messenger RNAs (mRNAs) was identical. In contrast, sst1 mRNAs were more often present than sst2 in SRIH-expressing neurons. Firstly, sst1 antisense ODN in vitro treatment abolished sst1, but not sst2, receptor modulation of glutamate sensitivity and decreased sst1, but not sst2, mRNAs. The reverse was true after treatment with sst2 antisense. Sense ODNs did not alter the effects of SRIH agonists. In a second series of experiments, nonanaesthetized adult male rats were infused for 120 h intracerebr...

In the present study, we tested whether 17beta-estradiol (E2)-induced PRL sensitivity to somatostatin-14 (SRIF) involves selective up-regulation of discrete somatostatin receptor subtypes (ssts) in primary cultures of female rat pituitary cells. The efficacy of the endogenous peptide SRIF to inhibit GH and PRL secretion and cAMP accumulation was compared with those of octreotide (OCT), BIM-23052, BIM-23056, and BIM-23268, which have been reported to be relatively selective for rat sst2, sst3, and sst5. Experiments were performed in steroid-depleted media supplemented or not with 1 nM E2 for 96 h. SRIF, OCT, and BIM-23052 inhibited cAMP accumulation and GH release independently of E2. In contrast, all three agonists affected PRL release in E2-treated cultures only. Inhibition of cAMP accumulation by SRIF, OCT, and BIM-23052 was enhanced by exposure of cells to E2. The rank of potency of the agonists, OCT = SRIFBIM-23052, was similar for GH and PRL inhibition. BIM-23268 was a weak agonist on GH, but not on PRL, secretion. BIM-23056 had no effect on the release of either hormone, but slightly inhibited cAMP formation in E2-treated cells. To verify whether SRIF receptor gene expression correlated with these observations, messenger RNA (mRNA) transcripts corresponding to the five ssts were measured by quantitative RT-PCR in the presence or absence of E2. Control cells expressed predominantly sst2 and sst3 transcripts; sst1 mRNA was present in moderate amounts, whereas sst4 and sst5 were only weakly expressed. E2 had a differential effect on distinct ssts; it increased mRNA concentrations corresponding to sst2 and sst3, and decreased that of sst1. These results indicate that sst2 and sst3 receptors are the major somatostatin receptors expressed in the female rat pituitary, and that both of them are positively regulated by estradiol. However, the capacity of lactotropes to respond to SRIF after exposure to E2 seems to depend more upon E2-induced up-regulation of the sst2 than of the sst3 receptor subtype.

Two different dwarf rat models with primary (dw/dw, DW) or secondary (transgenic growth retarded, WF/Tgr) GH deficiency and contrasting hypothalamic GH-releasing hormone (GHRH) and somatostatin (SRIH) expression were implanted sc with GC cells. These form encapsulated rat GH-secreting tumors that maintain high plasma rat GH levels for several weeks. In both strains, GC cell tumors stimulated growth and raised GHBP levels, without affecting pituitary GH content. In DW rats, GC cell implants increased SRIH expression in the periventricular nucleus (PeV), but not in the arcuate nucleus (ARC), whereas their high GHRH expression in ARC was decreased by GC cells. In contrast, GC cell implants in WF/Tgr rats had little effect on the already high SRIH expression in PeV or low GHRH expression in ARC, although they reduced SRIH expression in ARC. GC cell implants also reduced GH receptor expression in both ARC and PeV in the WF/Tgr dwarves. Thus, chronic GH overexposure stimulates rapid growth in both dwarf strains, but has differential hypothalamic effects in these models. This experimental approach now makes it possible to study the effects of pathophysiological concentrations of GH ranging from dwarfism to acromegaly in the same animal model.

The pulsatile pattern of GH secretion exhibits sexual dimorphism that is likely to depend on somatostatin (SRIH) effects on somatoliberin (GHRH) neurons in the hypothalamus. Using transgenic GHRH-enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP) mice, no difference in the total number of GHRH-eGFP neurons or change in somatostatin receptor sst2 and SRIH mRNA levels in ventromedial hypothalamic nucleus-arcuate nucleus and periventricular nucleus regions and GHRH mRNA levels in the ventromedial hypothalamic-arcuate region were observed between male and female mice. However, the percentage of GHRH-eGFP neurons bearing sst2A receptors reached 78% in female vs. 26% in male GHRH-eGFP mice (P < 0.02). This sex difference in sst2A distribution on GHRH neurons may play an important role in the sexually differentiated pattern of GH secretion.

GH is an anabolic hormone that is essential for normal linear growth and has important metabolic effects throughout life. The ultradian rhythm of GH secretion is generated by the intricate patterned release of two hypothalamic hormones, somatostatin (SRIF) and GHRH, acting both at the level of the pituitary gland and within the central nervous system. The recent discovery of ghrelin, a novel GH-releasing peptide identified as the endogenous ligand for the GH secretagogue receptor and shown to induce a positive energy balance, suggests the existence of an additional neuroendocrine pathway for GH control. To further understand how ghrelin interacts with the classical GHRH/SRIF neuronal system in GH regulation, we used a combined physiological and histochemical approach. Our physiological studies of the effects of ghrelin on spontaneous pulsatile GH secretion in conscious, free-moving male rats demonstrate that 1) ghrelin, administered either systemically or centrally, exerts potent, time-dependent GH-releasing activity under physiological conditions; 2) ghrelin is a functional antagonist of SRIF, but its GH-releasing activity at the pituitary level is not dependent on inhibiting endogenous SRIF release; 3) SRIF antagonizes the action of ghrelin at the level of the pituitary gland; and 4) the GH response to ghrelin in vivo requires an intact endogenous GHRH system. Our dual chromogenic and autoradiographic in situ hybridization experiments provide anatomical evidence that ghrelin may directly modulate GHRH mRNA- and neuropeptide Y mRNA-containing neurons in the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus, but that SRIF mRNA-expressing cells are not major direct targets for ghrelin. Together, these findings support the idea that ghrelin may be a critical hormonal signal of nutritional status to the GH neuroendocrine axis serving to integrate energy balance and the growth process.

Reciprocal interactions of somatostatin (SRIF) and vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) or TRH on in vitro PRL and GH release from male rats hemipituitaries were investigated. SRIF did not modify basal PRL release, but TRH- or VIP-induced release was inhibited by SRIF in a dose-dependent manner [effective concentration-fifty (EC50) = 1.7 +/- 0.9 nM for SRIF inhibition of TRH stimulation and EC50 = 0.8 +/- 0.5 nM for SRIF inhibition of VIP stimulation]. VIP and TRH did not affect GH release by themselves, but reduced the inhibition of GH secretion elicited by SRIF (EC50 = 7.6 +/- 3.4 nM for TRH blockade of SRIF inhibition and EC50 = 4.6 +/- 3.1 nM for VIP blockade of SRIF inhibition). Secretin, a partial structural analog of VIP, also blocked SRIF-induced inhibition of GH and stimulated PRL release. Secretin stimulation of PRL release was also prevented by SRIF. [D-Trp8,D-Cys14]SRIF, a potent analog of SRIF, antagonized VIP stimulation of PRL secretion with the same apparent affinity as the native peptide. The maximal stimulation, but not the apparent affinity of VIP action on prolactin release was reduced by SRIF, suggesting that the interaction is of a noncompetitive nature. This conclusion as further substantiated by the observation that neither TRH nor VIP were able to displace specific 125I-labeled [Tyr1] SRIF high affinity binding to pituitary membranes. The three peptides tested thus appear to exhibit reciprocal interactions mediated by independent receptor sites on GH as well as on PRL-producing cells.

The role of SRIF in starvation-induced inhibition of GH and insulin secretion was assessed by passive immunization with anti-SRIF serum. Six-hour secretory profiles obtained from chronically cannulated male rats deprived of food for 72 h showed marked suppression of GH secretory bursts and significant depression of plasma insulin levels. Administration of 1 ml SRIF antiserum (SRIF AS) iv to starved rats resulted in rapid (within 15 min) restoration of high amplitude GH pulses (600-800 ng/ml) and sighificant elevation of GH trough values. The mean 6-h GH level of starved SRIF, AS-treated rats (189.2 +/- 23.9 ng/ml) was significantly higher than that of starved, normal sheep serum-treated control animals (62.8 +/- 5.8 ng/ml) (P less than 0.005). In contrast to the effects on GH, plasma insulin levels in starved rats administered SRIF AS remained low. No significant difference was observed in the mean 6-h plasma insulin level of starved-SRIF, AS-treated rats when compared to starved, normal sheep serum-treated controls. These findings suggest that circulating SRIF is a physiological regulator of starvation-induced GH suppression but is not involved in mediating the inhibition of insulin.

Pharmacological characterization of somatostatin (SRIF) receptors located on somatotrophs, thyrotrophs, and lactotrophs was attempted by measuring the effects of 14 structural agonists of somatostatin (SRIF) on the inhibition of basal and GRF-stimulated GH and basal and TRH-stimulated PRL and TSH secretion. We also checked the abilities of the analogs to displace [125I]N-Tyr-SRIF binding to pituitary cell membranes and their potency to inhibit adenylate cyclase activity. There was a very good correlation (r = 0.975) between the displacement of [125I]N-Tyr-SRIF and the inhibition of adenylate cyclase activity by the analogs. The effects of the analogs on secretion of the three hormones followed the same rank order of potency. However, the active analogs displayed 2-6 times lower affinities in inhibiting PRL than GH or TSH secretions. The shift in affinity was even more pronounced in the case of the lower potency of the analogs as inhibitors of adenylate cyclase activity compared to hormone secretions. Pretreatment of the cells with pertussis toxin (100 ng/ml; 24 h) blocked SRIF inhibition of basal and GRF-stimulated adenylate cyclase activity and decreased by 83% [125I]N-Tyr-SRIF binding. It also blocked the ability of SRIF to inhibit GRF-induced GH and TRH-induced PRL and TSH secretion. However, pertussis toxin also increased GRF stimulation of GH secretion and decreased TRH stimulation of both TSH and PRL secretion. We conclude from our data that SRIF-binding sites located on the three target cells of the adenohypophysis are of a single class. These binding sites are negatively coupled to adenylate cyclase, but the inhibition of hormone secretions by SRIF cannot be explained solely through adenylate cyclase inhibition. Another mechanism of transduction must be involved in the actions of SRIF on its three pituitary target cells.

A sheep antiserum to somatostatin was used to develop RIA and immunoaffinity chromatography methods for the study of immunoreactive somatostatin (IRS) in brain tissue. IRS extracted from rat median eminence, anterior hypothalamic-preoptic area, amygdala, and parietal cortex bound reversibly to immunoaffinity columns, providing a technique for concentration and partial purification. Immunoaffinity purified IRS from each of the four brain regions eluted as four peaks on gel filtration chromatography. Each peak possessed biological activity, as determined by inhibitory effects on the release of GH from cultured rat anterior pituitary cells. No differences were detected by the methods employed between IRS from the anterior hypothalamic-preoptic area, which is rich in IRS-containing neuronal cell bodies, and that from the median eminence, where IRS is localized predominantly in nerve terminals.

A suitable preparation to study the effect of dopamine (DA) on in. vitro LHRH secretion is presented. Enzymatic degradation of LHRH in the incubation medium is completely inhibited by bacitracin (2 × 10−5 M). A high potassium concentration (56mM) induces an increase in LHRH release from entire pieces of mediobasal hypothalamus (MBH), but not from a synaptosomal pellet; this release is inhibited when calcium is omitted. The depolarization-induced LHRH release in vitro is independent of the initial amount of the peptide present in the MBH. In contrast, DA (10−6M) is not effective in vitro on MBH from ovariectomized rats but induces a fast release of LHRH from MBH of normal male and estradiol-pretreated ovariectomized rats. The preparation presented here appears to be of great interest in investigating amine-steroid-LHRH interactions at the cellular level.

[125I]Iodo-Tyr1-somatostatin (SRIF) binds with high affinity to one class of sites in the rat anterior pituitary with a KD of 0.91 +/- 0.22 nM and a receptor concentration of 104.4 +/- 1.9 fmol/mg protein. This binding is saturable with respect to tissue concentration and is time-, temperature-, pH-, and calcium-dependent. It is also reversible as a function of time. The rates of association and dissociation were calculated to be 5.98 X 10(7) M-1 min-1 and 0.578 min-1, respectively. Binding of [125I]iodo-Tyr1-SRIF is not inhibited by morphine, beta-endorphin, [D-Ala2]Met-enkephalin, LHRH, TRH, histidylproline diketopiperazine, neurotensin, substance P, bombesin or vasoactive intestinal peptide. In contrast SRIF, [Tyr1]SRIF, and [D-Trp8,D-Cys14]SRIF displace [125I]iodo-Tyr1-SRIF binding with Ki values 0.10 +/- 0.05, 0.46 +/- 0.18, 0.05 +/- 0.01 nM, respectively. The constants of inhibition of a series of alanine monosubstituted analogs of SRIF are correlated (r = 0.89) with their biological potency on GH secretion. Furthermore, postnatal development patterns of [125I]iodo-Tyr1-SRIF binding sites follow the ability of SRIF to inhibit GH release. Thus, [125I]iodo-Tyr1-SRIF binding to adenohypophyseal membranes seems to reflect interaction with SRIF receptors on adenohypophyseal cells. Since biological effects of the peptide have been reported on GH, thyrotropin-stimulating hormone, and PRL secretion, further studies are required to determine the cell types upon which this binding occurs.

Specific [125I]-Iodo-NTyr somatostatin binding sites are present in adenohypophyseal and cerebral cortical membranes. Guanine nucleotides reduce the maximal binding capacity of adenohypophyseal binding sites without significantly affecting their apparent affinity. In pituitary as well as in cortex, GTP is the most potent nucleotide followed by GDP and guanylyl imidodiphosphate (GMP-PNP). The effect appears specific of guanine nucleotides since ATP, ADP and AMP are inactive on [125I]-Iodo-NTyr somatostatin binding. These results, showing the nucleotide sensitivity of [125I]-Iodo-NTyr somatostatin binding in pituitary and cerebral cortex, are compatible with a coupling of somatostatin receptors with adenylate cyclase.

Somatostatin (SRIF) pathways in rat brain were investigated by measurement of radioimmunoassayable SRIF in median eminence (ME), preoptic area (POA), amygdala and parietal cortex (Cx) after selective brain lesions or hypothalamic deafferentation. Bilateral lesions were placed in the ventromedial nuclei (VM), anterior hypothalamic area (AHA), ventral medial preoptic area (v-MPOA), dorsal medial preoptic area (d-MPOA) or amygdala. AHA and v-MPOA lesions resulted in a 90 and 80% decrease in SRIF in the ME, respectively. VM lesions produced 50% reduction in ME and POA SRIF concentration, but only the decrease in POA was statistically significant. No effect was obtained on the SRIF content in extrahypothalamic brain regions after VM, AHA, or v-MPOA lesions. d-MPOA and amygdala lesions did not affect the SRIF content in any region assayed. MBH deafferentation resulted in a 90% decrease in SRIF content in the island and an 80% decrease in the POA. These results indicate that SRIF present in the ME arises mainly ...

The mechanisms by which plasma T3 and TSH decrease after a 3-day starvation period are not completely understood. In this study we tested the hypothesis of a possible modification in the sensitivity of thyrotroph cell to T3 and/or TRH. For that purpose, TRH tests were performed before and after a 3-day starvation in euthyroid, thyroidectomized, and T3-treated (75 or 175 ng/100 g BW) thyroidectomized male Wistar rats. TRH (10 to 500 ng/100 g BW) was injected iv through a chronically-implanted catheter. In another set of experiments, hypophyseal TSH content was also determined. Our results showed that after a 3-day-starvation plasma TSH decreased in all except hypothyroid rats; TSH responsiveness to TRH was unchanged in euthyroid rats but was increased in hypothyroid rats; and the T3-dependent increase in TSH responsiveness to TRH was significantly amplified. Moreover, there was a significant positive correlation between TSH responsiveness to TRH and hypophyseal TSH content. These results suggest that starvation induces an increased sensitivity of thyrotroph cell to T3.