Variations de la réponse testiculaire à hCG au cours de la période périnatale chez le Rat: Influence des oestrogènes

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Abstract
The variations of the testicular responsiveness to hCG and the implication of the maternal estrogens in the functioning of the testes were studied in the perinatal male rat. Male rat fetuses treated with hCG at the end of gestation failed to show an increase in serum testosterone (T). The lack of testicular responsiveness to hCG in the fetus is neither due to anesthesia nor to a blocking effect of estrogens directly on the testes. On the other hand, hCG injected either at 4 h or at 48 h after birth increases serum T. The administration of 5 μg of estradiol 1713 (E2) to the newborn male rat at the time of birth blocks the expression of the postpartum testosterone surge. The fall in the plasma estrogens and the increase of the testicular sensitivity to gonadotropic stimulation at the time of birth are factors which are very likely implicated in the determinism of the neonatal testicular hyperactivity.