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Preoptic area

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Brain: Preoptic area
Preoptic area is 'PO', at left, in blue.
[[Image:|250px|center|]]
Latin '
Gray's subject #
Part of
Components
Artery
Vein
BrainInfo/UW hier-360
MeSH A08.186.211.730.385.357.342.450

The preoptic area is a region of the hypothalamus. According to the MeSH classification, it is considered part of the anterior hypothalamus.

Contents

[edit] Functions

The preoptic area is responsible for thermoregulation and receives nervous stimulation from thermoreceptors in the skin, mucous membranes and hypothalamus itself.

This area propagates stimuli to either the heat-losing or heat-promoting centres of the hypothalamus.

[edit] Nuclei

There are four nuclei in this region, according to Terminologia Anatomica:

  • nucleus preopticus lateralis (lateral preoptic nucleus)
  • nucleus preopticus medialis (medial preoptic nucleus)
  • nucleus preopticus medianus (median preoptic nucleus)
  • nucleus preopticus periventricularis (periventricular preoptic nucleus)

[edit] Medial preoptic nucleus

Medial preoptic nucleus releases gonadotropin-releasing hormone.

[edit] Median preoptic nucleus

The median preoptic nucleus generates thirst. Drinking decreases noradrenaline release in the median preoptic nucleus[1]

[edit] Aging

Studies in female mice have shown that estrogen receptor-alpha declines in the pre-optic hypothalamus as they grow old. The female mice that were given a calorically restricted diet during the majority of their lives, maintained higher levels of ERα in the pre-optic hypothalamus than their non-calorically restricted counterparts. [2]



[edit] References

  1. ↑ Drinking decreases the noradrenaline release in the median preoptic area caused by hypovolemia in the rat Hiroko Miyakuboa, b, Kazuo Yamamotob, Satoko Hatakenakaa, Yasushi Hayashic and Junichi Tanaka
  2. ↑ Yaghmaie F, Saeed O, Garan SA, Freitag W, Timiras PS, Sternberg H. (2005). Caloric restriction reduces cell loss and maintains estrogen receptor-alpha immunoreactivity in the pre-optic hypothalamus of female B6D2F1 mice.. Neuro Endocrinol Lett. 26 (3): 197-203.

[edit] See also


Brain: diencephalon
Epithalamus Pineal body • Habenula (Habenular nuclei)
Hypothalamus
Subthalamus Subthalamic nucleus • Zona incerta • Thalamic fasciculus • Lenticular fasciculus
Thalamus/nuclei Ventral nuclear group (VA/VL, VP/VPM/VPL) • MD • AN • LNG (Pulvinar) • Intralaminar nucleus (Centromedian nucleus) • Midline nuclear group • Thalamic reticular nucleus • Metathalamus (MG, LG) • Interthalamic adhesion
Third ventricle recesses: (Optic recess, Infundibular recess, Suprapineal recess, Pineal recess) • Hypothalamic sulcus
Other Interventricular foramina • Optic chiasm • Subfornical organ • Mammillothalamic tract
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