The hypothalamus: an integrative site of the autonomic nervous system and neuroendocrine system

Abstract

The hypothalamus regulates various kinds of physiological functions to maintain homeostasis in the whole body. The hypothalamus also has many neuronal nuclei that each have a different physiological function. In particular, the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus is known to be one of the most important nuclei that integrate the autonomic nervous system and neuroendocrine system. When I was a PhD student, I revealed that synaptic inputs from the gastric branch of the vagal nerves to the PVN magnocellular neurosecretory neurons, that produce vasopressin and oxytocin, modulate the neuronal activities of these neurons and the secretion of vasopressin and oxytocin via central noradrenergic pathway in rats, using electrophysiology and a microdialysis system. Since then, we have continued to conduct basic studies on the hypothalamus as an integrative site of the autonomic nervous system and neuroendocrine system. In this paper, I introduce some of our recent research related to the autonomic nervous and neuroendocrine systems in the hypothalamus, using electrophysiology and genetically modified animals.