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The present study was undertaken to examine the effects of ethanol on the ovarian steroidogenic acute regulatory protein(StAR) gene expression during prepubertal and onset of puberty. From day 25, each rat began receiving either a control saline or ethanol. Animals were sacrificed on day 27 and 32, and their ovaries and blood were collected. In the present results, ethanol treatment significantly decreased serum luteinizing hormone contents at both time points. Uterine weights of ethanol-treated group were significantly lighter than control group at early time point while there was no noticeable discrepancy at late time point. Vaginal openings, a marker of onset of puberty, also clearly delayed in ethanol-treated group. Using an in situ hybridization histochemistry, we determined the expression of mRNAs encoding StAR. Ovaries from ethanol-treated rats showed a suppresed expression of StAR mRNA. These results demonstrate that ethanol can disturb the prepubertal ovarian function and onset of puberty, at least in part, through the inhibition of ovarian StAR gene expression.
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