Pituitaries from female Yorkshire pig fetuses (90 d, n = 26; 110 d, n = 17) and 6-mo-old pigs (n = 5) were enzymatically dispersed, plated, and cultured for 47 h. The cells were then rinsed and incubated for 22 h with testing media containing 0, 50, 100, 200, 300 or 400 ng mL−1 of IGF-I. Half of the wells from each concentration of IGF-I were then incubated for an additional 3 h with concentrations of IGF-I similar to those in the previous incubation, while the other half also had GRF added to the testing media to reach a final concentration of 10−8 M. Culture media were then collected from all the wells, were frozen, and later assayed for GH. Irrespective of whether GRF was present, IGF-I decreased pituitary secretion of GH (P < 0.001). A significant negative response to IGF-I was already present at the dose of 50 ng mL−1 (P < 0.0001). However, the extent of the GH response to IGF-I seen in pigs of various ages differed depending on whether GRF was present. The present results therefore establish that IGF-I does exert a negative feedback on pituitary GH secretion in swine and that the age-related changes in this feedback are dependent on the presence of GRF. In swine, it appears that high circulating concentrations of GH in late-gestation fetuses are not a result of a lesser sensitivity of the somatotroph to the inhibitory actions of IGF-I. Key words: Pig, cell culture, pituitary, IGF-I, growth hormone, age
