Puberty is defined as the awakening of the hypothalamic-pituitary gonadal axis. Sheep are seasonal breeders, experiencing an annual period of reproductive quiescence and renaissance that can be utilized as a model for the onset of puberty. Kisspeptin and gonadotropin-inhibitory hormone appear to be important for the seasonal shift in reproductive activity and the former is mandatory for puberty...

Nutrition influences reproductive functions across vertebrates, but the effects of food availability on the functioning of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis in wild birds and the mechanisms mediating these effects remain unclear. We investigated the influence of chronic food restriction on the HPG axis of photostimulated house finches, Haemorhous mexicanus. Food-restricted birds had...

Background To compare two different gonadotropin preparations, human menopausal gonadotropin (hMG) and recombinant follicle-stimulating hormone (rFSH), combined with clomiphene citrate (CC) in women with unexplained infertility undergoing intrauterine insemination (IUI). MaterialsAndMethods In this prospective clinical trial, couples prepared for IUI cycles were randomly allocated to two groups...

We report on ovarian dysfunction in a 3-year-old girl with blepharophimosis, ptosis, and epicanthus inversus syndrome (BPES). A gonadotropin releasing hormone test showed hyperresponses of luteinizing hormone (<0.2-->7.2 mIU/ml) and follicle-stimulating hormone (7.1-->44.8 mIU/ml), and a human menopause gonadotropin test yielded no estradiol response (13-->11 pg/ml). The results suggest that pr...

Clinical findings and endocrine studies are reported concerning six subjects (from two pedigrees) suffering from isolated hypogonadotropic hypogonadism. Their complete lack of any gonadotropin response to clomiphene stimulation, together with positive responses of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH) to LH-releasing-hormone stimulation (LH-RH) provide evidence for a h...

Photoperiodic regulation of physiology, morphology, and behavior is crucial for many animals to survive seasonally variable conditions unfavorable for reproduction and survival. The photoperiodic response in mammals is mediated by nocturnal secretion of melatonin under the control of a circadian clock. However, artificial light at night caused by recent urbanization may disrupt the circadian cl...

In men, administration of exogenous testosterone (T) exerts direct negative feedback effects at the pituitary as well as at the hypothalamic level. This study was undertaken to determine whether T itself causes the inhibitory effects on the pituitary, or whether conversion to estradiol (E2) or dihydrotestosterone (DHT) is required. We assessed the biological activity of serum luteinizing hormon...

To determine the role of the thyroid gland on the ovarian functions during the initiation process of puberty, we examined the effects and its mechanisms of hypothyroidism on the first ovulation induced by equine chorionic gonadotropin (eCG) in immature female rats. Animals were thyroidectomized on day 22 and were injected with 5 IU of eCG on day 26 to induce the first ovulation on day 29. The n...