The purpose of the present study was to further examine the hypothesis that activation of G protein-coupled receptor 54 (GPR54) signaling at the end of the juvenile phase of primate development is responsible for initiation of gonadarche and the onset of puberty. Accordingly, we determined whether repetitive iv administration of the GPR54 receptor agonist kisspeptin-10 (2 microg as a brief 1-min infusion once every hour for 48 h) to the juvenile male rhesus monkey would prematurely elicit sustained, pulsatile release of hypothalamic GnRH, the neuroendocrine trigger for gonadarche. GnRH release was monitored indirectly by measuring LH secretion from the in situ pituitary, the GnRH responsiveness of which had been heightened before the experiment with an intermittent iv infusion of synthetic GnRH. Agonadal animals (n = 4) were employed to eliminate any confounding and secondary effects of changing feedback signals from the testis. The first brief infusion of kisspeptin-10 evoked an LH discharge that mimicked those produced by GnRH priming, and this was followed by a train of similar LH discharges in response to hourly activation of GPR54 by repetitive kisspeptin-10 administration. Concomitant treatment with a GnRH receptor antagonist, acyline, abolished kisspeptin-10-induced LH release. Repetitive kisspeptin-10 administration also provided a GnRH-dependent signal to FSH secretion. These findings are consistent with the notion that, in primates, the transition from the juvenile (attenuated GnRH release) to pubertal (robust GnRH release) state is controlled by activation of GPR54 resulting from increased expression of hypothalamic KiSS-1 and release of kisspeptin in this region of the brain.

The effect of continuous administration of the C-terminal fragment of metastin, the ligand for the G protein-coupled receptor, GPR54, on GnRH-induced LH secretion was examined in three agonadal, juvenile male monkeys whose responsiveness to GnRH was heightened by pretreatment with a chronic pulsatile iv infusion of synthetic GnRH. After bolus injection of 10 microg human (hu) metastin 45-54 (equivalent to kisspeptin 112-121), the GPR54 agonist was infused continuously at a dose of 100 microg/h and elicited a brisk LH response for approximately 3 h. This rise was then followed by a precipitous drop in LH despite continuous exposure of GPR54 to metastin 45-54. On d 4, during the final 3 h of the infusion, single boluses of hu metastin 45-54 (10 microg), N-methyl-DL-aspartic acid (NMDA) (10 mg/kg) and GnRH (0.3 microg) were administered to interrogate each element of the metastin-GPR54-GnRH-GnRH receptor cascade. Although the NMDA and GnRH boluses were able to elicit LH pulses, that of hu metastin 45-54 was not, demonstrating functional integrity of GnRH neurons (NMDA) and GnRH receptors (NMDA and GnRH) but desensitization of GPR54. The desensitization of GPR54 by continuous hu metastin 45-54 administration has therapeutic implications for a variety of conditions currently being treated by GnRH and its analogs, including restoration of fertility in patients with abnormal GnRH secretion (i.e. idiopathic hypogonadotropic hypogonadism and hypothalamic amenorrhea) and selective, reversible suppression of the pituitary-gonadal axis to achieve suppression of gonadal steroids (i.e. precocious puberty, endometriosis, uterine fibroids, and prostate cancer).

In agonadal juvenile male monkeys, continuous administration of human metastin 45-54 (hu metastin 45-54) leads to desensitization of its receptor, G protein-coupled receptor 54 (GPR54), and decreased LH. The present study extended this observation to the adult male monkey, a more preclinically relevant model in which robust activity in the hypothalamic-pituitary-testicular axis is present. Continuous iv infusion of hu metastin 45-54 at either 200 or 400 microg/h elicited a marked rise in circulating LH that peaked 2-3 h after initiation of treatment. Thereafter, levels declined, and by 24 h, LH in metastin 45-54-infused animals was similar to control. LH release in response to an iv bolus of hu metastin 45-54 (10-30 microg) during the final 3 h of continuous infusion was truncated or abolished (low and high peptide dose, respectively). GPR54 desensitization by the high-dose metastin 45-54 infusion was associated with compromised pituitary response to a bolus GnRH injection (0.3 microg). LH pulse amplitude and pulse frequency were markedly suppressed during high-dose metastin 45-54 treatment. Surprisingly, the fidelity of the relationship between circulating testosterone (T) and LH was distorted during the high-dose peptide infusion. Thus, for a given concentration of LH, T levels were invariably higher during the high-dose metastin 45-54 infusion than during vehicle, suggesting that the peptide may exert direct actions on the testis to amplify T production. These findings support the notion that GPR54 is desensitized by continuous exposure to ligand, and they raise the possibility of an intratesticular role of GPR54.

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