Estrogen receptor alpha in the brain mediates tamoxifen-induced changes in physiology in mice

Zhi Zhang, Jae Whan Park, In Sook Ahn, Graciel Diamante, Nilla Sivakumar, Douglas Arneson, Xia Yang, J Edward van Veen, Stephanie M Correa 2021. eLife 2021;10:e63333
PDF
santiago-zika-in-puerto-rico.pdf
Supplement
santiago-zika-in-puerto-rico-supp.pdf
DOI
10.7554/eLife.63333

Abstract

Tamoxifen is a critical and inexpensive weapon in the fight against ER+ breast cancer. Unfortunately tamoxifen therapy produces side effects that harm quality of life and limit treatment compliance. Here we present 4 important findings:

  1. Mice respond to tamoxifen therapy in many of the same ways as humans, making mice a valuable model for studying tamoxifen’s side effects.
  2. Tamoxifen treatment affects various hypothalamic cell types, most strikingly neurons and ependymal cells.
  3. Loss of estrogen receptor-alpha reverses