Roles of thermoTRP channels in the effects of estrous cycle on thermoregulation in rats

• Grant number: 18/04912-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Scientific Initiation
• Effective date (Start): September 30, 2018
• Effective date (End): January 29, 2019
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Physiology - General Physiology
• Principal Investigator: Maria Camila Almeida
• Grantee: Giovana Marchini Armentano
• Supervisor: Andrej A. Romanovsky
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências Naturais e Humanas (CCNH). Universidade Federal do ABC (UFABC). Ministério da Educação (Brasil). Santo André , SP, Brazil
• Research place: St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center, United States
• Associated to the scholarship: 17/13062-5 - Chronic stimulation of the cold receptors - TRPM8 on weight gain in obese ob/ob mice: implications for obesity control, BP.IC

Abstract

The molecular mechanisms for detecting the ambient temperature (Ta) and internal body temperature (Tc) were not widely known until the recent discovery of TRP channels ( "transient receptor potential"), particulary those that are sensitive to temperature (thermoTRP). The regulation of Tc is extremely important for the maintenance of homeostasis of living organisms and thermoregulatory systems defend core temperature against a range of ambient temperatures. TRPM8 is characterized as the main thermoTRP channel involved in thermoregulation in responses to cold stimuli. Moreover, similar to menopausal woman, the estrogen deficiency given by withdrawing the ovaries from female rats increases the sensitivity of the heat-defense pathway, leading to the activation of heat-loss effectors, a thermoregulatory dysfunction that mimics the hot flushes.Based on the involvement of TRPM8 channels in thermoregulation, we intend to study whether the blockage of TRPM8 can contribute to thermoregulatory behavior in order to activate behavioral heat loss effectors in a model of hot flushes in female rats. For such purpose, female rats with and without ovarian removal will be used to verify if the blockade of peripheral TRPM8 channels alters their thermoregulatory behavior. (AU)