Abstract
Summary
Neonatal treatment of male rats with HCG or LH caused marked hyperplasia and hypertrophy of the interstitial cells when the testicular histology was examined upon castration at 3 days of age. In these males, advancement of differentiation of the masculine pattern of GTH release apparently occurred. Most of the rats which received HCG or LH injection (s) neonatally had a polyfollicular ovarian graft when examined at autopsy on Day 60, whereas castration on Day 3 still produced “feminine males” at high incidence in rats injected with FSH or saline alone neonatally. Only a small number of rats (2/11, 2/16, respectively) were masculinized. These results suggest possible participation of GTH in the regulation of the neonatal testicular activity and the masculinization of the rat brain.
We express our appreciation to Dr. C. H. Sawyer for his valuable criticism. We also express our thanks to the Hormone Distribution Section, NIAMD, Bethesda, MD for the LH and FSH used in this study.
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