Abstract
In the domestic hen, ovulation is preceded by an increase in plasma levels of luteinizing hormone (LH)1,2, but the local events within the ovary which lead to follicular rupture are not clearly understood. The mechanism of ovulation is thought to involve enzymatic activity3, morphological change in the stigma4 and neuromuscular activity modulated by α-adrenergic receptors5. The administration of anti-adrenergic drugs in vivo inhibits ovulation6,7, while the largest ovarian follicles contain high concentrations of noradrenaline and adrenaline, and low levels of dopamine8. We have now examined the possibility that these catecholamines, in addition to LH, are involved in the ovulatory process at the ovarian level. We found that noradrenaline and adrenaline induce ovulation independently of LH and that this action is mediated through α-adrenergic receptors at the follicle level. Dopamine does not seem to have any direct role in this process.
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Moudgal, R., Razdan, M. Induction of ovulation in vitro by LH and catecholamines in hens is mediated by α-adrenergic receptors. Nature 293, 738–739 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1038/293738a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/293738a0
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