Abstract
Abstract
A radioimmunoassay for corticosterone was developed and characterized using corticosterone antiserum (377, Niswender) and a simple ethanol extraction procedure. The antiserum appeared to be highly specific for corticosterone. Intraassay variability was 3.67 ± 0.75% (mean ± SE) at 50 pg of corticosterone; interassay variability with a mean value of 51.15 pg was 6.98 ± 1.01%. Assay sensitivity was 9.48 ± 0.60 pg. Utilizing this assay, serum obtained from adrenalectomized and adrenalectomized-ovariectomized rats yielded lower corticosterone values than serum from intact or ovariectomized rats. Intact females had lower corticosterone values than intact males. Rats exposed to elevated temperature (32.5°) displayed significantly (P < 0.001) elevated plasma corticosterone levels (48.48 ± 4.37 μg/100 ml) compared to control (24.5°) animals (21.31 ± 2.02 μg/100 ml). The high specificity, sensitivity, precision, recovery level, and ease of this technique make it useful for the study of either serum or plasma corticosterone.
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