Detection of Messenger RNA for Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone (GnRH) but not for GnRH Receptors in Rat Pancreas

Although gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH), GnRH-like mo lecule, and GnRH receptor (GnRH-R) have been reported to exist in several tissu e s other than brain or anterior pituitary, there are no reports concerning GnRH o r GnRH-R gene expression in a normal pancreatic gland. In order to define the p r oduction of GnRH as well as GnRH-R in the pancreatic gland, we examined their g e ne expression in various developmental stages of rat pancreas using the reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). GnRH mRNA transcripts were f ou nd in pancreas of male and female rats at different ages, expressing at about th e same level, whereas GnRH-R mRNA transcripts could not be detected in any rat pancreatic gland samples. These results suggest a possible biological role of GnR H in rodent pancreas.

Keywords
gonadotrophin-releasing hormone; gonadotrophin-releasing hormone recep tor; gene expression; pancreas; reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain react ion (RT-PCR); mRNA