Androgen receptor in the neural tube of the mouse and chicken embryo

Abstract

Androgen effects, mediated by the androgen receptor, regulate important cellular processes such as growth, proliferation, and differentiation. The presence of androgen receptor has been described in structures of the central nervous system, mainly in advanced fetuses, newborns, and adult animals. This study describes the presence and location of androgen receptor in early developmental stages of the nervous system. The androgen receptor mRNA was evidenced through reverse transcriptase-PCR and the androgen receptor protein by immunohistochemistry and western blot techniques in the cerebral vesicles of 9.5-day mouse embryos and chicken embryos at stages 8-17 of Hamburger and Hamilton. The androgen receptor protein was located in the nucleus of neuroepithelial cells throughout the neural tube.