The hypothalamus-pituitary-ovary (HPO) axis plays fundamental roles in female neuroendocrinology and reproduction. Pituitary gonadotropins are located in the center of this axis. Previous investigation suggested that miR-7 is closely linked with gonadotropins. However, the interaction between miR-7 and the HPO axis remains unclear. This study aims to determine whether and how miR-7 functions in this axis. A mouse ovariectomy model and mouse primary pituitary cells were used in this study. The results showed that miR-7 is localized to gonadotrophs and somatotrophs. miR-7 can inhibit the expression, synthesis and secretion of gonadotropins, but not growth hormones. Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) has inhibitory effects on miR-7, while estrogen enhances miR-7 expression. miR-7 is vital for the pathway by which GnRH and estrogen regulate gonadotropins by targeting v-raf-leukemia viral oncogene 1 (Raf1). Together, these results indicate that miR-7 acts as a potential switch in the feedback loop of the HPO axis by regulating gonadotropins.

下丘脑-垂体-卵巢（HPO）轴在女性神经内分泌学和生殖中起基本作用。垂体促性腺激素位于该轴的中心。先前的研究表明，miR-7与促性腺激素紧密相关。但是，miR-7和HPO轴之间的相互作用仍然不清楚。这项研究旨在确定miR-7在该轴上是否起作用以及如何发挥作用。在这项研究中使用了小鼠卵巢切除模型和小鼠原发性垂体细胞。结果表明，miR-7定位于性腺营养和体养营养。miR-7可以抑制促性腺激素的表达，合成和分泌，但不能抑制生长激素。促性腺激素释放激素（GnRH）对miR-7具有抑制作用，而雌激素则增强miR-7的表达。Raf1）。总之，这些结果表明，miR-7通过调节促性腺激素在HPO轴的反馈回路中充当潜在的开关。