Sodium, Potassium and Chloride Retention Produced by Growth Hormone in the Absence of the Adrenals

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Abstract
Metabolic studies were carried out on "plateaued" female rats of the Long-Evans strain fed a constant daily diet. Adrenalectomized rats, maintained with adrenal cortical extract (A.C.E.) responded to intraperit. injn. of 1 mg. of GH/day by showing a fall in urinary N, Na, K and Cl, comparable in degree with normal control rats. Adrenalectomized animals without any maintenance therapy of A.C.E. responded to similar dosage of growth hormone (G. H.) by an immediate and sharp decline in N, Na and K excretion. Adrenalectomies were proved to be complete by subjecting all animals to a high (500 mg./day) K diet, and rejecting data from all "adrenalectomized" animals that survived this diet. On the basis of this data, it is evident that N- and electrolyte-retaining action of G.H. is comparable in adrenalectomized and normal rats, both with and without admn. of A.C.E. to the adrenalectomized animals, indicating that these effects of G.H. are not mediated through the adrenal cortex.