Differences in sympathetic nervous system activity and NMDA receptor levels within the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus in rats with differential ejaculatory behavior.

Jia-dong Xia; Jie Chen; Bai-bing Yang; Hai-jian Sun; Guo-qing Zhu; Yu-tian Dai; Jie Yang; Zeng-jun Wang

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Differences in sympathetic nervous system activity and NMDA receptor levels within the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus in rats with differential ejaculatory behavior.

Author: Jia-Dong XIA ¹ ; Jie CHEN ² ; Bai-Bing YANG ³ ; Hai-Jian SUN ⁴ ; Guo-Qing ZHU ⁴ ; Yu-Tian DAI ³ ; Jie YANG ¹ ; Zeng-Jun WANG ¹
Author Information

1. Department of Urology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210000, China.
2. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210000, China.
3. Department of Andrology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210000, China.
4. Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Disease and Molecular Intervention, Department of Physiology, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210000, China.
Publication Type:Journal Article
Keywords: N-methyl-D-aspartic acid receptor; ejaculation; paraventricular nucleus; sympathetic nervous system
MeSH: Animals; Copulation; Ejaculation/physiology*; Female; Male; Neurons/physiology*; Paraventricular Hypothalamic Nucleus/physiology*; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate/metabolism*; Sexual Behavior, Animal/physiology*; Splanchnic Nerves/physiology*; Sympathetic Nervous System/physiology*
From: Asian Journal of Andrology 2018;20(4):355-359
CountryChina
Language:English
Abstract: Differences in intravaginal ejaculation latency reflect normal biological variation, but the causes are poorly understood. Here, we investigated whether variation in ejaculation latency in an experimental rat model is related to altered sympathetic nervous system (SNS) activity and expression of N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA) receptors in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN). Male rats were classified as "sluggish," "normal," and "rapid" ejaculators on the basis of ejaculation frequency during copulatory behavioral testing. The lumbar splanchnic nerve activity baselines in these groups were not significantly different at 1460 ± 480 mV, 1660 ± 600 mV, and 1680 ± 490 mV, respectively (P = 0.71). However, SNS sensitivity was remarkably different between the groups (P < 0.01), being 28.9% ± 8.1% in "sluggish," 48.4% ± 7.5% in "normal," and 88.7% ± 7.4% in "rapid" groups. Compared with "normal" ejaculators, the percentage of neurons expressing NMDA receptors in the PVN of "rapid" ejaculators was significantly higher, whereas it was significantly lower in "sluggish" ejaculators (P = 0.01). In addition, there was a positive correlation between the expression of NMDA receptors in the PVN and SNS sensitivity (r = 0.876, P = 0.02). This study shows that intravaginal ejaculatory latency is associated with SNS activity and is mediated by NMDA receptors in the PVN.