The influence of the estrous cycle, persistent estrus, ovariectomy and estrogen replacement, on the numbers and frequency of spontaneously active neurons in slices of the rat preoptic region in vitro

Abstract Spontaneous single-unit activity was studied in the preoptic region of rat brain slices. Similar unit frequencies were recorded during the estrous cycle and for all ovariectomized (OVX) rats (median frequencies between 0.8 and 2.0 Hz). Higher frequencies were recorded in persistent estrus (PE) (median 3.5 Hz) and in males (median 3.4 Hz), P vs estrus P vs estrus P P