Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) is the central regulator of gonadotropins, which stimulate gonadal function. Hypothalamic neurons that produce kisspeptin and neurokinin B stimulate GnRH release. Inactivating mutations in the genes encoding the human kisspeptin receptor (KISS1R, formerly called GPR54), neurokinin B (TAC3), and the neurokinin B receptor (TACR3) result in pubertal failure. H...

BACKGROUND Sex, emotion, and reproduction are fundamental and tightly entwined aspects of human behavior. At a population level in humans, both the desire for sexual stimulation and the desire to bond with a partner are important precursors to reproduction. However, the relationships between these processes are incompletely understood. The limbic brain system has key roles in sexual and emotion...

Kisspeptins are members of the Arg-Phe amide family of peptides, which have been identified as endogenous ligands for a G-protein-coupled receptor encoded by a gene originally called GPR54 (also known as AXOR12 or hOT7T175). After this pairing, the gene has been renamed KISS1R. The International Union of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology Committee on Receptor Nomenclature and Drug Classification ...

The major determinants of the variability in pubertal maturation are reported to be genetic and inherited. Nonetheless, nutritional status contributes significantly to this variability. Malnutrition delays puberty whereas obesity has been associated to a rise in Idiopathic Central Precocious Puberty (ICPP) in girls. However, epidemiology data indicate that contribution of obesity to early puber...

CONTEXT In vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment is an effective therapy for infertility, but can result in the potentially life-threatening complication, ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS). OBJECTIVE This study aimed to investigate whether kisspeptin-54 can be used to effectively and safely trigger oocyte maturation in women undergoing IVF treatment at high risk of developing OHSS. SET...

Introduction: The role of estrogen in the stimulation of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neurons is clear. These neurons do not express estrogen alpha receptors, so other mediator neurons should be present to transmit the positive feedback effect of estrogen to the GnRH neurons. Kisspeptin neurons have an important role in the stimulation of GnRH neurons, so they can be the mediator of th...

Puberty is a transition period of reproductive development from juvenile stages to adulthood and depends upon the activity of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neurons. GnRH neurons are initially activated in utero but remain quiescent throughout the juvenile period. Premature reactivation of GnRH neurons results in precocious puberty in mice and humans, but the mechanisms underlying develo...

OBJECTIVE A rise in oestrogen in the preovulatory phase produces a GnRH-induced luteinising hormone surge. Oestrogen receptors are not found on GnRH neurons but these are present on kisspeptin neurons. That led us to hypothesise that serum kisspeptin levels may vary during various phases of the menstrual cycle in relation to serum oestradiol. METHODS Thirty female students, 18-25 years old, S...

Context Kisspeptin (KISS1), a recently discovered neuropeptide that acts upstream of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neurons, is critical for maturation and function of the reproductive axis. This review aimed at providing comprehensive and up-to-date information on Kisspeptin and its role in female reproduction. Evidence Acquisition A literature review was performed using PubMed for al...

The hypothalamic peptide kisspeptin (metastin), the endogenous ligand of the G protein-coupled receptor KISS1R, plays a critical role in controlling GnRH release from hypothalamic GnRH neurons and thereby regulates hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal functions. Although the therapeutic potential of kisspeptin is attractive, its susceptibility to proteolytic degradation limits its utility. To overcom...