EFFECT OF ANDROGENIC AND ANABOLIC COMPOUNDS ON PSEUDOCHOLINESTERASE ACTIVITY IN THE LIVER AND SERUM OF THE RAT

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Abstract
Immature male and female rats have a similar basal level of pseudocholinesterase activity in the liver and serum. In male rats pseudocholinesterase activity declines sharply with the onset of sexual maturity, between the 4th and the 5th week, after which it remains more or less constant. In female rats, also coinciding with the onset of sexual development, the activity starts to rise between 5 and 6 weeks and then increases gradually up to 30 weeks. Castration of male rats results in an increase of the enzyme activity to the basal level, whereas subsequent injection of testosterone-propionate brings about a fall to the level found in adult male rats. Three androgenic/anabolic steroids were compared for their effects on pseudocholinesterase activities in liver and serum of male castrates, viz. testosterone-propionate, testosterone-phenyl-propionate and nor-testosterone-phenyl-propionate, the latter known to possess a relatively high anabolic potency. This was confirmed in our experiments by direct protein determinations in liver and serum and by levator ani muscle/seminal vesicle ratios. At a dose of 1 mg daily for 10 days, the former 2 substances had a similar considerable effect on pseudocholinesterase activity, whereas the effect of the nor-derivative was much smaller. A response similar to that of 1 mg of testosterone-propionate was only obtained with 4 mg of the nor-derivative. At that dose level the androgenic effect of the nor-derivative on the seminal vesicles is somewhat less than that of 1 mg testosterone-propionate daily. It is concluded that the cholinesterase activity lowering effect of the compounds investigated is correlated with their androgenic rather than with their anabolic potencies.