Does allopregnanolone modulate striatal dopamingergic activity of rats under different gonadal hormones conditions?
Our results suggest that ALL could modulate the dopaminergic transmission in the corpus striatum by causing changes in the activity of TH and/or in the pre- and post-synaptic dopaminergic terminals in the corpus striatum. This neurosteroidal mechanism could be a new kind of neurotransmitter systems modulation accomplished on TH activity itself and/or on the second messengers not related to ionic channels. Additionally, our results reinforce the idea of a close relationship between the fast non-genomic mechanism of ALL and the genomic actions of estrogen and progesterone.
Our observations support the hypothesis that lupus-like autoimmune features develop in the absence of functional Tregs.