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The region anterior and ventral to the third ventricle (AV3V) region is a major source of excitatory afferents to the magnocellular neuroendocrine system, and is essential for the osmotically regulated release of oxytocin. We investigated whether this input has a similarly essential role in parturition. Rats were implanted with a guide cannula in the AV3V region on days 9–18 of pregnancy. Following the birth of the third pup, rats were anaesthetized briefly with ether and either given an electrolytic AV3V lesion or a sham procedure was carried out. In eight AV3V-lesioned rats the mean (± S.E.M.) median interbirth interval following the lesion was 6·3 ± 1·2 min compared with 5·2 ± 0·6 min in 11 sham-lesioned rats. All rats completed delivery of their litters. The mean plasma concentration of oxytocin was unchanged following the sham procedure (pre-sham 17·1±2·8 pmol/l, n = 8; 15 min post-sham 18·1±2·7 pmol/l, n = 8; 30 min post-sham 19·2 ± 3·5 pmol/l, n = 8). In AV3V-lesioned rats, plasma oxytocin was significantly raised following the lesion (pre-lesion 14·6±1·3 pmol/l, n = 7; post-lesion 58·3 ± 9·8 pmol/l, n = 7) and was still higher than the sham-treated group after 30 min (55·8 ± 9·9 pmol/l). Thus there was no significant difference in the time-course of parturition between AV3V-lesioned rats and sham-lesioned rats, and no evidence that the lesion impaired the release of oxytocin. Furthermore, in rats given an AV3V lesion on the morning of the expected day of delivery, parturition was neither delayed nor disrupted, suggesting that the AV3V region does not contribute to the mechanisms controlling the onset of parturition.

Journal of Endocrinology (1989) 121, 109–115

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