Mechanism of the Antipyretic Action of Glucocorticoids1

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Abstract
These studies were designed to determine whether the antipyretic action of glucocorticoids is due to inhibition of the formation or release of leukocytic pyrogen (L P) or the suppression of the action of L P on the central nervous system. The pyrogenic response of adult New Zealand rabbits to endotoxin pretreated for 3 days with glucocorticoid is about 1/4 that of saline controls. The pyrogenic response to LP of animals pretreated as above with glucocorticoid is not significantly different from that of control animals. Rabbit buffy coat cells incubated with endotoxin and glucocorticoid produce significantly less L P than cells incubated with endotoxin alone. These studies suggest that glucocorticoids are antipyretic because they act on leukocytes to inhibit the formation and/or release of active leukocytic pyrogen.

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