EflFect of Human Menopausal Gonadotropin upon Spermatogenesis and Testosterone Production in Juvenile Rhesus Monkeys

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Abstract
Plasma testosterone levels and testis morphology were studied in 4 immature rhesus monkeys treated with human menopausal gonadotropin (hMG) in graded daily doses of 5–40 IU for 50–70 days. Testosterone values were measured twice weekly, and testis biopsies were taken before treatment, at each increase in dose, and at the end of treatment. Before treatment, testosterone levels were low and variable (range: 30–250 ng/100 ml) in all 4 animals, and biopsies of testis from 3 monkeys showed immature tubules containing only Sertoli cells and type A spermatogonia; relatively advanced spermatogenesis was found in the fourth animal. During administration of hMG in doses at or above 10 IU/ day, plasma testosterone rose to adult levels (600– 1600 ng/100 ml) and type B spermatogonia followed by spermatocytes appeared in biopsies from the three juvenile animals. After about 6 weeks of treatment, plasma testosterone in all 4 monkeys declined to pretreatment levels despite continued administration of hMG. The presence of circulating antibodies cross—reacting with human luteinizing hormone and human chorionic gonadotropin was subsequently demonstrated in two animals. During the phase of testosterone decline, spermatids appeared and differentiated in the seminiferous epithelium of two initially juvenile monkeys. Although spermatogonia present in the immature testes did not respond to treatment with uniform promptness, the timing of events after initiation of spermatogenesis corresponded to the normal adult sequence. (Endocrinology92: 813, 1973)

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