bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Ascorbic acid potentiates the inhibitory effect of dopamine on prolactin release in primary cultured rat pituitary cells
Authors: Shin S. H. , Stirling R. 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACT
The chemical structure of dopamine includes an ortho-catechol group which is labile to oxidizing agents. Ascorbic acid, a reducing agent, has in the past been added to the incubation medium in order to protect dopamine against oxidation. However, there has been no thorough examination of the biological effect of ascorbic acid on prolactin release. In this present study we have shown that ascorbic acid has neither a stimulatory nor an inhibitory effect on prolactin release but reduces by approximately two orders of magnitude the concentration of dopamine necessary to inhibit prolactin release from cultured anterior pituitary cells. The strong potentiation effect of ascorbic acid was reproduced using apomorphine. We compared the effect of ascorbic acid and isoascorbic acid on dopamine inhibition of prolactin release. Isoascorbic acid is an epimer of ascorbic acid, having the same reduction–oxidation potential as ascorbic acid, but is less biologically active. Isoascorbic acid was less effective in potentiating the dopaminergic effect than was ascorbic acid, which supports the notion that potentiation by ascorbic acid is not entirely due to its reducing property.
In order to dissociate further the chemical protection of dopamine from the biological potentiation, the inhibitory effects of freshly made and 3-h-old dopamine solutions were compared. Neither one of the two solutions contained any ascorbic acid, yet the two solutions did not show any difference in their ability to inhibit prolactin release during the 3-h incubation period, indicating that no significant amount of dopamine was oxidized. The minimum effective concentration of ascorbic acid necessary to demonstrate potentiation was between 0·001 and 0·01 mmol/l. The potentiation effect was shown after 1, 2, or 3 h of exposure to dopamine, and was evident in both 2- and 6-day-old cultured cells.
The effect of ascorbic acid can either be a pharmacological potentiation or a physiological effect on the primary cultured pituitary cells. However, it is quite clear that ascorbic acid is not a simple anti-oxidant but produces a strong potentiating effect on the dopaminergic inhibition of prolactin release by some other means.
J. Endocr. (1988) 118, 287–294
Effects of an aromatase inhibitor on testosterone-induced inhibition of thymus growth in immature female rats
Authors: Greenstein B. D. , Mander B. J. , Fitzpatrick F. T. A. 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACT
The hypothesis was tested that the inhibitory action of testosterone on thymus growth is mediated by its metabolism to oestradiol. Immature female rats were given s.c. implants of silicone elastomer tubing containing 5 or 20 mg testosterone alone, or together with 25 or 50 mg of an aromatase inhibitor 1,4,6-androstatriene-3,17-dione (ATD). Some rats received implants containing 5 mg oestradiol or 5 mg dihydrotestosterone (DHT). After 14 days the thymus was removed and weighed. Body weight gain was similar in animals treated with empty implants, or 5 mg testosterone or DHT, or with ATD alone. The combination of testosterone and ATD significantly increased body weight gain, and oestradiol significantly decreased it. Thymus growth was inhibited by both doses of testosterone and by oestradiol, but not by DHT. ATD alone did not inhibit thymus growth, nor did the lower dose of ATD inhibit the action of testosterone. The higher dose of ATD did, however, significantly reduce the inhibitory action of testosterone on the thymus. The inhibitory action of testosterone on the growing thymus may be due, at least in part, to its conversion to oestradiol.
J. Endocr. (1988) 119, 65–67
Inhibition of phospholipase A2 isoenzymes in human endometrium by mefenamic acid and indomethacin: modulation by calcium ions
Authors: Bonney R. C. , Qizilbash S. T. , Franks S. 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACT
The inhibition of endometrial phospholipase A2 activity by the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents mefenamic acid and indomethacin was studied over the concentration range 1 mmol/l–0·1 μmol/l. Both phospholipase A2 type 1 (a calcium-dependent enzyme) and phospholipase A2 type 2 (a calciumindependent enzyme) were inhibited by mefenamic acid, but the magnitude of the inhibition was dependent on calcium concentration. Phospholipase A2 type 1 was inhibited 50% by 10 μmol mefenamic acid/1 in the presence of 1·25–5 mmol calcium/l, but a concentration of 2·2 mmol mefenamic acid/l was required for 50% inhibition in the absence of calcium. On the other hand, phospholipase A2 type 2 was inhibited 50% by 22 μmol mefenamic acid/1 in the absence of calcium and by 100 μmol mefenamic acid/l in the presence of calcium (2·5 mmol/l). Although indomethacin was a less effective inhibitor of phospholipase A2 activity, a similar relationship with calcium was demonstrated. However, indomethacin also had a stimulatory effect on phospholipase A2 type 1 activity in the absence of calcium. Our findings suggest that the two endometrial enzymes may be inhibited by different mechanisms and that the dependence of the enzyme on calcium for activation may be a contributing factor.
J. Endocr. (1988) 119, 141–145
Calcitonin gene-related peptide and calcitonin secretion from a human medullary thyroid carcinoma cell line: effects of ionomycin, phorbol ester and forskolin
Authors: Haller-Brem S. , Muff R. , Fischer J. A. 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACT
Calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) and calcitonin are secreted together from medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) cells. Interactions of cytosolic free calcium concentration (Cai2+) and the protein kinase C and A pathways on the secretion of immunoreactive CGRP and calcitonin have been investigated in a human MTC cell line. Ionomycin (10 μmol/l) raised the concentration of Cai2+, concomitant with a transient stimulation of the secretion of CGRP and calcitonin. 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA; 16 nmol/l) did not affect the concentration of Cai2+, but caused a gradual rise of the secretion of CGRP and calcitonin. Combined addition of 10 μmol ionomycin/1 and 16 nmol TPA/1 resulted in additive stimulation of CGRP and calcitonin secretory responses. Forskolin (10 μmol/l) alone did not change the concentration of Cai2+, marginally enhanced (P>0·1) the release of CGRP and calcitonin and increased by 23-fold the cellular levels of cyclic AMP (cAMP). Ionomycin and TPA did not change cellular cAMP. Forskolin synergistically enhanced (P<0·01) the ionomycin-induced early phase as well as the TPA-induced late phase of the CGRP and calcitonin secretory responses. In conclusion, increased concentrations of Cai2+ together with protein kinase C and A activation mediate the secretion of CGRP and calcitonin in MTC cells.
J. Endocr. (1988) 119, 147–152
The functional activity of hypothalamic 5-hydroxytryptamine neurones in broody bantam hens
Authors: Macnamee M. C. , Sharp P. J. 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACT
An assessment was made of the possible role of hypothalamic 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) in the regulation of prolactin secretion in broody bantam hens. Prolactin secretion was stimulated less in incubating hens deprived of their nests for 24 h (nest-deprived) than in laying hens after administration of the 5-HT receptor agonist quipazine, or precursor 5-hydroxytryptophan. One type of 5-HT-binding site was found in the anterior and posterior hypothalami of out-of-lay, incubating and laying hens. Differences in prolactin secretion in these birds could not be accounted for by changes in the abundance of this type of 5-HT-binding site. Another type of 5-HT-binding site, with a higher density but lower affinity, was found in the anterior hypothalami of laying hens. No specific 5-HT-binding sites were found in the anterior pituitary gland.
The turnover rates of 5-HT were compared in the anterior and posterior hypothalami of laying, incubating and nest-deprived hens. The turnover rates were estimated from the rate of accumulation of 5-HT after inhibiting its catabolism using the monoamine oxidase inhibitor, pargyline, or by measuring the ratio of the concentrations of 5-HT and its major metabolite, 5-hydroxyindole acetic acid. Both methods of measurement gave the same results. The turnover of 5-HT was increased in the anterior but not posterior hypothalami of incubating hens when compared with laying or nest-deprived hens. There was also a significant increase in turnover of 5-HT in the posterior hypothalami in nest-deprived hens when compared with laying or incubating birds.
These results demonstrate a strong correlation between the function of 5-HT neurones in the hypothalamus and reproductive activity. They are consistent with the view that hypothalamic 5-HT is involved in the regulation of prolactin secretion.
Journal of Endocrinology (1989) 120, 125–134
Serum inhibin levels in normal men and men with testicular disorders
Authors: de Kretser D. M. , McLachlan R. I. , Robertson D. M. , Burger H. G. 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACT
Serum concentrations of inhibin, FSH and LH were measured in 39 normal men and 127 men with testicular disorders resulting in infertility. The infertile men were divided into groups on the basis of their mean sperm count, FSH levels and karyotype. The mean (±s.d) serum concentrations of inhibin in the normal men was 554 ± 156 U/l and did not differ significantly from those groups with oligospermia, azoospermia or Klinefelter's syndrome. Combined analyses of all groups did not reveal any significant correlation between serum concentrations of inhibin and FSH or with any other parameter measured. Serum concentrations of FSH and LH were positively correlated, and Leydig cell dysfunction, as evidenced by increased serum LH levels, low testosterone levels or a declining testosterone/LH ratio were found with severe spermatogenic damage. The failure of serum concentrations of inhibin to correlate with those of FSH levels or the degree of testicular damage raise questions as to the clinical value of this parameter alone.
Journal of Endocrinology (1989) 120, 517–523
Interruption of parturition in rats by morphine: a result of inhibition of oxytocin secretion
Authors: Russell J. A. , Gosden R. G. , Humphreys E. M. , Cutting R. , Fitzsimons N. , Johnston V. , Liddle S. , Scott S. , Stirland J. A. 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACT
Oxytocin secretion is inhibited by opioids, and oxytocin is important in parturition. The effects on parturition of morphine, a relatively selective μ-opioid receptor agonist, were studied in the rat. Morphine or vehicle with or without the opiate antagonist naloxone were administered immediately after the birth of the second pup and the subsequent course of parturition was recorded in a total of 80 rats. Both s.c. morphine (10 mg/kg) and intracerebroventricular (i.c.v.) morphine (18 μg through a previously implanted cannula) interrupted parturition, delaying the birth of the sixth pup after treatment to 187·3 ± 35·9 (s.e.m.) min and 195·4 ± 19·5 min respectively, compared with 46·4 ± 3·7 and 66·1 ± 17·5 min after vehicle alone. The dose of morphine given i.c.v. had no effect when given s.c. Naloxone given concurrently prevented the effects of morphine. Eventually the rate of parturition in the morphine-treated groups recovered. Perinatal pup mortality rate was not increased when morphine was given to the mothers, but it did inhibit the expression of normal intrapartum maternal behaviour.
Pup mortality was increased 48 h post partum by morphine given during parturition, and it reduced the proportion of rats with normal maternal behaviour 24 h post partum. Morphine did not affect spontaneous or oxytocin-stimulated contractile activity of the parturient uterus in vitro. The concentration of oxytocin in trunk blood plasma was decreased 40 min after i.c.v. morphine (24·3 ± 3·9 vs 39·3± 6·5 pmol/l in controls), as was vasopressin (7·2 ± 1·5 vs 19·7 ± 4·5 pmol/l in controls). Intravenous infusion of oxytocin (2–5 mU/min for 144·3 ± 8·2 min; total infused 448·5 ± 61·9 mU) after i.c.v. morphine re-started parturition; all pups were born to these rats (mean time to pup 6, 110·3 ± 12·7 min) before the i.v. vehicle-infused rats given i.c.v. morphine re-started (mean time to pup 6, 406·3±125·2 min).
It is concluded that morphine given during parturition acts centrally through opioid receptors to inhibit oxytocin secretion, and impairs the expression of maternal behaviour. Reversal of the effects of morphine on parturition by i.v. oxytocin demonstrates the important role of oxytocin in fetus ejection and expulsion.
Journal of Endocrinology (1989) 121, 521–536
Angiotensin II and potassium activate different calcium entry mechanisms in rat adrenal glomerulosa cells
Authors: Spät A. , Balla I. , Balla T. , Cragoe E. J. , Hajnóczky Gy. , Hunyady L. 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACT
Initial 45Ca uptake was measured in isolated rat glomerulosa cells. A small reduction in membrane potential produced by increasing the K+ concentration from 2 to 3·6 mmol/l stimulated 45Ca uptake by about 35%, while a bigger depolarization induced by 18·5 mmol K+/l increased the uptake by about 100%. Since Ca2+ influx was already activated at a calculated membrane potential below −70 mV, and was found to be sensitive to the dihydropyridine antagonist nifedipine (1 μmol/l), but insensitive to nickel ions (100 μmol/l), it does not meet the criteria established for T- or L-type voltage-dependent Ca2+ channels. Exposure of glomerulosa cells to angiotensin II (AII) for 10 min also enhanced the rate of 45Ca influx. The effect of AII was not sensitive to 1 μmol nifedipine/l, but was strongly inhibited by 5-(N-4-chlorobenzyl)-N-(2′,4′-dimethyl)benzamil (CBDMB, 30 μmol/l), an inhibitor of the Na+/Ca2+ antiporter. These observations suggest that during the sustained phase of stimulation with AII, a CBDMB-sensitive mechanism, rather than dihydropyridine-sensitive calcium channels, is involved in Ca2+ uptake in rat glomerulosa cells. The bulk Ca2+ influx did not correlate with aldosterone production; however, the maintained activity of different Ca2+ entry mechanisms seems to be essential for AII-induced aldosterone production.
Journal of Endocrinology (1989) 122, 361–370
The effects of knife cuts in the sub-paraventricular zone of the female rat hypothalamus on oestrogen-induced diurnal surges of plasma prolactin and LH, and circadian wheel-running activity
Authors: Watts A. G. , Sheward W. J. , Whale D. , Fink G. 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACT
To investigate the role of suprachiasmatic efferent connections in the expression of diurnal hormone rhythms, the efferent pathway from the suprachiasmatic nucleus (the putative circadian generator in the rat) to the sub-paraventricular zone (the main terminal area of suprachiasmatic efferents) was disrupted using bilateral horizontal knife cuts in ovariectomized oestrogen-treated rats. The position of the knife cut was assessed by observing its effect on vasoactive intestinal polypeptide immunoreactivity (a marker for suprachiasmatic efferents into the sub-paraventricular zone). The size of both the diurnal plasma LH and prolactin surges was markedly and consistently reduced over the 3-week period following the lesion in animals with a total deafferentation of the sub-paraventricular zone, compared with sham-operated animals or lesioned animals with an intact sub-paraventricular zone. When lesioned animals were grouped according to the presence or absence of damage to the preoptic area, no significant differences were found in the sizes of the plasma hormone surges. When similar knife cuts were given to animals whose activity cycles were observed, no significant effects were noted in the ability of the animals to synchronize to a light/dark regime or to free-run in constant light conditions. These results suggest that the suprachiasmatic nucleus influences the diurnal surges of plasma LH and prolactin in oestrogen-treated ovariectomized rats, initially by an interaction with the sub-paraventricular zone, and not by a direct influence on gonadotrophin-releasing hormone neurones or other more rostral structures.
Journal of Endocrinology (1989) 122, 593–604
Testosterone treatment restores reduced vasopressin-binding sites in the kidney of the ageing rat
Authors: Herzberg N. H. , Goudsmit E. , Kruisbrink J. , Boer G. J. 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACT
Young, middle-aged and aged rats received s.c. testosterone implants for 50–52 days in order to investigate whether supplementation of testosterone in aged rats could normalize the reported reduction of kidney arginine vasopressin (AVP)-binding sites and increase the plasma concentration of AVP. Receptor number, which was measured by means of a membrane-binding assay with [3H]AVP as ligand, was below the detection level in the untreated aged rat. Following testosterone treatment, no effects were seen in the youngest groups, but in the aged group AVP receptors became clearly detectable, albeit with a lower affinity. A remarkable observation was the increase in affinity for renal AVP binding in the middle-aged compared with the young rat. Plasma levels of AVP in control aged rats tended to be higher. Such a tendency was completely absent in the testosterone-treated aged rats. Possible mechanisms underlying the restoration of reduced AVP-binding sites in the kidney of the aged rat by testosterone treatment are discussed.
Journal of Endocrinology (1989) 123, 59–63
The International Standard for Pituitary FSH: Collaborative study of the Standard and of four other purified human FSH preparations of differing molecular composition by bioassays, receptor assays and different immunoassay systems
Authors: Storring P. L. , R. E. Gaines Das 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACT
The International Standard for Pituitary FSH (IS; in ampoules coded 83/575) was assayed in terms of the Second International Reference Preparation of Human Pituitary FSH and LH for Bioassay (IRP 78/549) by 27 laboratories in 13 countries using bioassays, receptor assays and immunoassays. Estimates of the FSH content of the IS by in-vivo bioassay were homogeneous both within and between laboratories and gave a combined geometric mean (with 95% fiducial limits) of 79·9 (74·6–85·4) i.u./ampoule. Estimates by different in-vitro bioassays and receptor assays were also homogeneous between assays and laboratories, and gave a combined geometric mean (with 95% fiducial limits) of 31·2 (28·8–33·9) i.u./ampoule. However, estimates by the 19 different immunoassay systems were heterogeneous and varied between 5 and 31 i.u./ampoule.
The material in ampoules coded 83/575 was established by the World Health Organization as the International Standard for Pituitary FSH. It was assigned a unitage of 80 i.u./ampoule on the basis of its calibration by in-vivo bioassay, because this assay best identifies and defines the hormone. However, the introduction of the new IS will necessitate the recalibration of immunoassay kits.
FSH 84/530, prepared in the same way as the IS from the same FSH preparation, did not differ significantly from the IS in any of the assay systems studied and appeared to be equally suitable as a standard.
Four highly purified preparations of human FSH (FSH A–D), differing in their isoform compositions and in their in-vivo: in-vitro bioactivity ratios, were also studied. The ranking order of the specific activities of FSH A–D by in-vitro bioassays paralleled their order by receptor assays and the order of their content of FSH isoforms with isoelectric points > 4·5. (Potency estimates of FSH B and C in terms of the IS were greater by receptor assay than by in-vitro bioassay.) The overall ranking order of the specific activities of FSH A–D by immunoassays was different. Contrary to expectation, estimates in terms of the IS of specific activities by immunoassay differed more between preparations than those by in-vitro bioassay or receptor assay.
Differences in specificity between immunoassay systems were demonstrated not only in the calibration of the IS in terms of the crude FSH of IRP 78/549 but also in the comparisons of the highly purified FSH in the IS and FSH A–D. The differences in the immunoreactivities and bioactivities of FSH preparations differing in their isoform compositions greatly complicate the standardization of assays for FSH.
Journal of Endocrinology (1989) 123, 275–293
Short- and long-term effects of an LHRH antagonist given during the prepubertal period on follicle dynamics in the rat
Authors: Meijs-Roelofs H. M. A. , van Cappellen W. A. , van Leeuwen E. C. M. , Kramer P. 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACT
The effects of the suppression of the high gonadotrophin concentrations normally present by the end of the second week of life on ovarian follicle dynamics were studied in immature rats. Gonadotrophins were suppressed by treatment with an LHRH antagonist (LHRH-A; Org. 30276) on days 6, 9, 12 and 15, and the total population of ovarian follicles was studied at 15 and 28 days, on the day of first oestrus and on the day of oestrus at or following 90 and 300 days of age. Primordial follicles were counted and growing follicles were counted and measured. In rats treated with LHRH-A, follicle recruitment into the growing pool was clearly diminished; the number of growing follicles was significantly (P<0·01) lower up to the day of first oestrus and the pool of primordial follicles was significantly (P<0·05) larger at 15 and 28 days. Ovarian weights were significantly lower in rats treated with LHRH-A until at least 90 days of age. However, on the day of oestrus at or after 90 and 300 days of age, there were no differences in either the pool of primordial follicles or the pool of growing follicles between rats treated with LHRH-A and control rats. There was also no difference between groups in the number of fresh corpora lutea at these ages. It was concluded that the early peak in gonadotrophin concentrations in immature rats causes substantial recruitment of follicles into the growing pool. Thus, the number of follicles entering the growing pool is not solely dependent upon the size of the pool of primordial follicles but is clearly influenced by the level of circulating gonadotrophins.
In contrast, the large gonadotrophic stimulation that normally takes place during the second and third week of life is neither a prerequisite for functional sexual maturation nor for later cyclic function. Shortly before the time of first ovulation a tight control of follicle dynamics is established which is largely independent of previous gonadotrophin concentrations and follicle dynamics.
Journal of Endocrinology (1990) 124, 247–253