Abstract
Females are disproportionately affected by irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) with menstrual
cycle-dependent fluctuations in abdominal pain suggesting a role for ovarian hormones.
IBS patients also exhibit greater activation of brain areas involved in pain affect
such as the amygdala, yet the role of supraspinal processes in the effects of ovarian
hormones on visceral pain is largely unexplored. The goal of the current study was
to determine whether sex steroids act at the level of the amygdala to alter colonic
pain sensitivity. Ovariectomized rats received implants on the amygdala of progesterone,
estradiol, progesterone combined with estradiol, or cholesterol as a control to examine
the involvement of the amygdala in ovarian hormone-mediated changes in visceral sensitivity.
Visceral sensitivity was quantified as the number of abdominal contractions, a visceromotor
response (VMR), in response to graded pressures of colorectal distension (CRD). Somatic
sensitivity was also assessed by measuring the mechanical force required to elicit
hindpaw withdrawal. Elevated levels of progesterone and/or estradiol on the amygdala
heightened the responsiveness to CRD; in contrast, neither estradiol nor progesterone
altered somatic sensation. Furthermore, administration of progesterone or estradiol
to areas adjacent to the amygdala did not affect visceral sensitivity. Future studies
will address the specific steroid receptors mediating the effects of progesterone
and estradiol.
Perspective
To our knowledge, this study represents the first description of a specific brain
site mediating the effects of ovarian steroids on visceral sensitivity. These data
also suggest that an amygdala-dependent mechanism may be responsible, at least in
part, for the exacerbation of visceral symptomatology in females.
Key words
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: December 20, 2010
Accepted:
October 21,
2010
Received in revised form:
September 17,
2010
Received:
August 13,
2010
Footnotes
This work was supported by funding from the Department of Veterans Affairs (2007-2010) and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (2006-2007). B.G-V.M. is supported by a VA Career Scientist Award and B. M. by a VA Predoctoral Fellowship (2008-2009).
The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose.
Identification
Copyright
Published by Elsevier Inc.
