Estrogen actions in the central nervous system

This article will review the neural actions of estrogens in the central nervous system, focusing on brain structures outside of the hypothalamus and on neurally mediated processes other than reproductive behavior and reproductive neuroendocrine events. We do this, however, in the context of what is known about estrogen actions in the hypothalamus. In this summary of the recent scientific literature, we place particular emphasis on estrogen and progestin effects in the hippocampal formation, as well as basal forebrain of the rat, because these brain structures are prominent in learning and memory and also are sites of neural degeneration in dementing illnesses such as Alzheimer's disease.