Plasma LH and FSH Levels in the Androgen Insensitive Pseudohermaphroditic Rat: Responses to Steroid Administration1

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Plasma LH and FSH levels were determined in androgen insensitive Stanley- Gumbreck male pseudohermaphroditic (Ps) rats. Plasma LH levels in intact Ps animals were 4- fold higher than in normal (Nl) male litter mates, while FSH levels were equal. The elevated LH levels were correlated with pituitary “castration cells” and increased Leydig cell 3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase activity. Administration of testosterone enanthate 6 mg daily for 12 days, to castrated animals, produced 50% and 98% suppression of plasma LH in Ps and Nl rats, respectively. By contrast, estradiol produced a similar decrease of plasma LH in both groups. The changes of plasma FSH concentrations during sex steroid administration were qualitatively similar to those of LH. Testosterone enanthate administration produced a marked increase in preputial gland weight in Nl animals and a small but detectable increase in Ps rats. This observation, along with the LH suppression, indicates that the androgen insensitivity in these animals is relative rather than absolute. In addition, it was noted that the preputial glands of the Ps animals were resistant to progesterone administration, whereas those from normal animals had a 1.7-fold weight increase in response to this steroid. (Endocrinology88: 763, 1971)

This publication has 0 references indexed in Scilit: