ACTION OF DIETHYLSTILBESTROL ON CYTOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF ANTERIOR PITUITARIES OF FEMALE RATS, TOGETHER WITH CERTAIN OBSERVATIONS ON THE EFFECT OF CASTRATION1

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Abstract
Nineteen normal and 10 castrated immature $ rats received subcut. various amts. of stilbestrol for 2-15 days. Control observations were made on uninjected, normal, immature [female][female] and on immature [female][female] castrated for 15 and 90 days. Adm. of stilbestrol for short periods induced marked basophilic degranulation. Many of the degranulated basophiles were characterized by hypertrophy of the Golgi apparatus and by an increase in the number of mitochondria ; in others, the Golgi hypertrophy was not apparent but mitochondria were abundant. Many of the chromo-phobes exhibited enlargement of the Golgi apparatus and an increased prominence of the mitochondria. Changes in the eosinophiles, while they did occur in rats injected for shorter periods, were more pronounced after longer inj. intervals. The cells underwent degranulation, accompanied by hypertrophy of the Golgi body and by an increase in the number and size of the mitochondria. The changes induced by stilbestrol in the ant. lobe were identical to those caused by naturally occurring estrogens. Castration for 15 days results in a conspicuous increase in the number and size of the granular basophiles. However, many partially and completely degranulated cells were also observed which were generally characterized by abundant mitochondria. In rats castrated for 90 days a lesser number of degranulated basophiles were seen.