Work

Estrogen Receptor 2b Is Involved in Regulating Gonadotropin-Inhibitory Hormone Expression During Early Development in Zebrafish

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Gonadotropin-inhibitory hormone (GnIH) is a neuropeptide involved in the regulation of reproductive function in vertebrates. It is able to inhibit the synthesis and secretion of GnRH and Gth in the HPG axis. However, the regulatory role and mechanism by which current gonadal steroid hormones regulate GnIH are still unclear. In this study, transcription factor binding site analysis was performed on the promoter sequence of zebrafish GnIH. Whereafter, transgenic zebrafish (GnIH: mCherry) accurately labeled GnIH and esr2b knockout zebrafish, which were constructed previously, were used to explore the regulation between estrogen and GnIH. In vitro exposure of wild-type zebrafish embryos and transgenic zebrafish embryos to estradiol showed that 10 μM estradiol significantly increased the transcription level of GnIH. However, both 10 μM and 50 μM estradiol significantly increased the transcription level of GnIH in esr2b knockout zebrafish. We compared the expression levels of GnIH in esr2b knockout zebrafish and wild-type zebrafish at different developmental stages (48 hpf–120 hpf). The results showed that from 96 hpf, the expression level of GnIH in esr2b knockout zebrafish was significantly higher than that in wild-type zebrafish, indicating that esr2b is involved in the negative regulation of GnIH, and this regulatory relationship is established on the fourth day of zebrafish development.

Source: Animals

DOI: 10.3390/ani16030444

Authors: Wei Peng, Bolan Zhou, Yunsheng Zhang, Lili Hu, Liangguo Liu

Institution: Hunan University of Arts and Science

Language: English

Topic: Hypothalamic control of reproductive hormones

Subfield: Reproductive Medicine

Field: Medicine

Domain: Health Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,896