INFLUENCE OF SEX HORMONES ON AMIDINOTRANSFERASE LEVELS. METABOLIC CONTROL OF CREATINE BIOSYNTHESIS

1966 ◽  
Vol 53 (4) ◽  
pp. 655-662 ◽  
Author(s):  
István Kriskó ◽  
James B. Walker

ABSTRACT Arginine: glycine amidinotransferase is the first of two enzymes involved in creatine biosynthesis. The amidinotransferase specific activity (micromoles of hydroxyguanidine formed per hour per g wet weight of tissue) of kidney homogenates of mature male rats was about twice that of females of the same age, whereas activities were equal before puberty. Castration decreased the activity of males and increased that of females. The administration of testosterone propionate to young adult female rats resulted in a significant increase in enzyme activity. The same enzyme had previously been shown to be repressible by its end-product, creatine. Although there are numerous enzymes whose synthesis is known to be under hormonal control, amidinotransferase is the only mammalian enzyme described up to now on which there appears to operate both an end-product repression mechanism and a hormonal control on the de novo synthesis of the enzyme protein.

1963 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
pp. 137-146 ◽  
Author(s):  
O. L. Wolthuis

ABSTRACT Prolactin determinations have been carried out on the hypophyses and serum of rats. It was found that: Hypophyses of intact mature female rats contain almost twice as much prolactin as those of mature female rats spayed two months previously. The pituitary prolactin content in these spayed female rats is virtually identical with that of intact or castrated mature male rats. Treatment of intact mature female rats with oestradiol benzoate (50 μg daily for one week) considerably increases the prolactin content in the hypophyses and serum. Treatment of spayed mature female rats with sex steroids for two weeks shows that: oestradiol benzoate (50 μg daily) increases the prolactin content in the hypophyses and serum; testosterone propionate (2 mg daily) also increases the prolactin content in the hypophyses and serum, although the increases found were smaller than those obtained with the above-mentioned dose of oestradiol; progesterone (5 mg daily) did not significantly alter the pituitary prolactin content, whereas a highly suggestive increase was found in the serum content. From the results it was concluded that: Physiological amounts of androgens do not affect the prolactin function of the hypophysis, whereas physiological amounts of oestrogens do affect it. All three sex steroids investigated increase prolactin production in and secretion from the hypophysis. A negative feedback seems to be absent.


1973 ◽  
Vol 59 (3) ◽  
pp. 605-621 ◽  
Author(s):  
CARL DENEF ◽  
CAREW MAGNUS ◽  
B. S. McEWEN

SUMMARY The in-vitro conversion of testosterone to 17β-hydroxy-5α-androstan-3-one (5α-dihydrotestosterone, DHT) and 3α, 17β-dihydroxy-5α-androstane (3α-androstanediol, DIOL) in pituitary and slices of brain regions was compared between male and female rats. Intact pituitaries from male rats formed 2·5 times more DHT and 1·5 times more DIOL than those of females. A small sex difference was also detected in the hypothalamus, males again being higher than females. No sex differences could be detected in other brain regions. However, DHT formation in the brain was regionally differentiated with higher conversion rates in hypothalamus than in cortex, hippocampus, amygdala, pineal gland or cerebellum. The highest transformation, however, was found in the mid-brain. Metabolism in the pre-optic area was as low as that in the cortex. 5α-Dihydrotestosterone and DIOL formation in the pituitary increased several-fold after gonadectomy in both sexes and the sex difference disappeared. Little or no increase occurred after thyroidectomy or adrenalectomy. The increase in pituitary DHT formation after gonadectomy could be attenuated or prevented both by treatment with testosterone propionate and with oestradiol benzoate. Replacement therapy, particularly with oestradiol benzoate, gave rise to a sex difference reminiscent of that of normal animals. No significant change in pituitary DHT formation occurred in adult females which had been treated with testosterone propionate on the 4th day of life. The results suggested a close relationship between DHT formation and activity of gonadotrophin secretion, particularly at the level of the pituitary.


Author(s):  
Aline Byrnes ◽  
Elsa E. Ramos ◽  
Minoru Suzuki ◽  
E.D. Mayfield

Renal hypertrophy was induced in 100 g male rats by the injection of 250 mg folic acid (FA) dissolved in 0.3 M NaHCO3/kg body weight (i.v.). Preliminary studies of the biochemical alterations in ribonucleic acid (RNA) metabolism of the renal tissue have been reported recently (1). They are: RNA content and concentration, orotic acid-c14 incorporation into RNA and acid soluble nucleotide pool, intracellular localization of the newly synthesized RNA, and the specific activity of enzymes of the de novo pyrimidine biosynthesis pathway. The present report describes the light and electron microscopic observations in these animals. For light microscopy, kidney slices were fixed in formalin, embedded, sectioned, and stained with H & E and PAS.


1974 ◽  
Vol 142 (2) ◽  
pp. 273-277 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan-Åke Gustafsson ◽  
Åke Pousette

The regulatory mechanisms involved in the control of the nuclear NADPH-dependent 3-ketosteroid 5α-reductase (5α-reductase) activity were studied in liver, kidney and prostate. The substrate used was [1,2-3H]androst-4-ene-3,17-dione (androstenedione) (for liver and kidney) or [4-14C]androstenedione (for prostate). The hepatic nuclear 5α-reductase activity was greater in female than in male rats, was greater in adult than in prepubertal female rats, increased after castration of male rats, but was not affected by treatment with testosterone propionate or oestradiol benzoate. These regulatory characteristics are in part different from those previously described for the hepatic microsomal 5α-reductase. The renal nuclear metabolism of androstenedione, i.e. 5α reduction and 17β-hydroxy steroid reduction, was relatively unaffected by sex, age, castration and treatment with testosterone propionate. However, treatment of castrated male rats with oestradiol benzoate led to a significant increase in the 5α-reductase activity and a significant decrease in the 17β-hydroxy steroid reductase activity. Finally, the nuclear 5α-reductase activity in prostate was androgen-dependent, decreasing after castration and increasing after treatment with testosterone propionate. In conclusion, the nuclear 5α-reductase activities in liver, kidney and prostate seem to be under the control of distinctly different regulatory mechanisms. The hypothesis is presented that whereas the prostatic nuclear 5α-reductase participates in the formation of a physiologically active androgen, 5α-dihydrotestosterone, this may not be the true function of the nuclear 5α-reductase in liver and kidney. These enzymes might rather serve to protect the androgen target sites in the chromatin from active androgens (e.g. testosterone) by transforming them into less active androgens (e.g. 5α-androstane-3,17-dione and/or 5α-dihydrotestosterone).


1977 ◽  
Vol 232 (5) ◽  
pp. E522
Author(s):  
M Lis ◽  
R Boucher ◽  
M Chrétien ◽  
J Genest

Tonin, an enzyme present in rat submaxillary gland, converts angiotensin I to angiotensin II and is able to form angiotensin II directly from renin substrates. This enzyme was previously shown to be different from renin, tissue isorenins, and angiotensin I converting enzyme. The specific activity of tonin in rat submaxillary gland increases with the age of the animal and is much higher in male than in female rats; this sex difference is apparent from 60 to 70 days of age. There is a sharp drop of tonin activity in hypophysectomized animals, whereas adrenalectomy, thyroidectomy, and gonadectomy have have little effect. The marked increase in tonin activity was observed in animals bearing MtT-F4 transplantable tumors known to produce ACTH, prolactin, and growth hormone. Tonin specific activity in hypophysectomized male rats is restored to control levels by combined treatment with growth hormone and testosterone. Prolactin alone or in combination with testosterone, as well as transplanted pituitaries, has no effect in hypophysectomized animals. There is a significant specific binding of 125I-labeled growth hormone to isolated membranes of rat submaxillary gland.


1985 ◽  
Vol 248 (6) ◽  
pp. G639-G642 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. B. Kirkpatrick ◽  
N. M. Wildermann ◽  
P. G. Killenberg

The effect of estrogens and androgens on hepatic glycolithocholate sulfotransferase activity was studied in male rats. Significant increases in specific activity were noted following treatment of rats for 21 days with 17 beta-estradiol, 17 alpha-ethynylestradiol, and the nonsteroidal estrogen agonists nafoxidine, tamoxifen, and diethylstilbestrol. Similar treatment of male rats with 5 alpha-dihydrotestosterone, hydrocortisone, norethindrone, and prolactin did not affect activity. To further assess the effect of androgens, male rats were castrated. Glycolithocholate sulfotransferase activity increased fivefold by 14 days after castration. Treatment of castrated rats with 5 alpha-dihydrotestosterone prevented the increase and maintained activity at the level of sham-operated animals. Castrated animals exhibited an additional increment in activity following treatment with 17 alpha-ethynylestradiol: specific activity in these animals rose to levels comparable with those measured in untreated female rats. These data suggest endogenous androgens maximally suppress hepatic glycolithocholate sulfotransferase activity in male rats. The data also indicate that activity is stimulated by estrogenic compounds of varied chemical structure and that stimulation is not solely due to suppression of androgen release by the testes as a consequence of estrogen treatment.


1966 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-101 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. R. Beaton ◽  
A. J. Szlavko ◽  
J. A. F. Stevenson

The effect of various factors on excretion of a lipid-mobilizing activity in FMS IA (anorexigenic) and in FMS IB (fat-mobilizing) by the fasting rat has been investigated. During fasting, the greatest excretion of such activity in FMS IA and FMS IB occurred in the first 24 hours and diminished thereafter up to 72 hours; and the specific activity of FMS IB was greatest in the first 24 hours whereas that of FMS IA was constant throughout. The hypothalamicobese rat excretes FMS IA and FMS IB in greater than normal amounts. The alloxan-diabetic rat excretes less total activity of FMS IA and IB than do control animals. Young male rats excrete greater amounts of FMS IB, but not of FMS IA, than do adult rats, the greatest excretion per 100 g body weight being observed at approximately 37 days of age. At 27 days of age (prepuberty), male rats excreted a greater total activity of FMS IB but not of FMS IA than did female rats. At 90 days of age (post-puberty), there was no apparent sex difference in the amount of total activity of FMS IB excreted per rat, but when expressed per 100 g body weight, females excreted more FMS IB than did males.


1975 ◽  
Vol 67 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-79 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. DE MOOR ◽  
M. ADAM-HEYLEN ◽  
H. VAN BAELEN ◽  
G. VERHOEVEN

SUMMARY Adult rats of both sexes were either gonadectomized or hypophysectomized and gonadectomized. Three to eight weeks later they were treated for 14 consecutive days with oil or with 75 or 200 μg testosterone propionate (TP) per 100 g body weight. The animals were killed and for each sex the gonadectomized animals were compared with the hypophysectomized-gonadectomized animals as far as their NADPH- and NADH-dependent 3α-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases (3α-HSD) in renal microsomes, transcortin levels in serum and five organ weights relative to total body weight were concerned. For two of the latter, i.e. the relative kidney and prostatic weights, no significant differences were found. Transcortin levels, relative adrenal weights and renal NADPH-dependent 3α-HSD activities were higher in oil-treated gonadectomized animals than in oil-treated hypophysectomized-gonadectomized animals. The opposite was found for the relative weights of uterus and seminal vesicles and renal NADH-dependent 3α-HSD activities. These differences between gonadectomized and hypophysectomized-gonadectomized animals disappeared after TP treatment as far as transcortin levels were concerned but remained for the five other parameters. After gonadectomy sexual differences subsisted for all parameters studied. But whereas intact male rats had higher NADH-dependent 3α-HSD activities than female rats the opposite was found after gonadectomy. After gonadectomy plus hypophysectomy the between sex differences disappeared as far as transcortin levels were concerned but remained in the other parameters studied.


1977 ◽  
Vol 74 (3) ◽  
pp. 375-382 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. T. M. VREEBURG ◽  
PAULA D. M. VAN DER VAART ◽  
P. VAN DER SCHOOT

SUMMARY An inhibitor of aromatization, androsta-1,4,6-triene-3,17-dione (ATD), was administered to newborn male and female rats and various parameters of gonadal and sexual function were examined in adulthood. Males injected with 1 mg ATD on the day of birth (day 1) and on days 3, 5, 10 and 15 postnatally, subsequently (day 55) showed normal male and female copulatory behaviour, but were not able to maintain cyclicity in ovarian transplants. When the ATD was administered by Silastic implants, however, cyclicity in ovarian transplants did occur. Neither form of treatment brought about significant changes in neonatal plasma or testicular testosterone concentrations. Female rats implanted on day 3 of life with Silastic capsules containing ATD and then given an injection of 0·25 mg testosterone propionate on day 5 subsequently showed normal ovarian function, whereas the controls receiving only testosterone propionate showed persistent vaginal cornification, anovulation and polyfollicular ovaries. The results support the view that the central conversion of testicular androgens to oestrogens during the neonatal period is necessary to abolish cyclic gonadotrophin release and to suppress female copulatory behaviour.


1983 ◽  
Vol 96 (2) ◽  
pp. 259-267 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Gillham ◽  
J. S. M. Hutchinson ◽  
M. B. Thorn

The concentration of cytochrome P-450 in microsomes prepared from the livers of mature female Wistar-derived rats was significantly lower than in mature males. This sex difference was abolished after hypophysectomy, when the concentration of the cytochrome in males and females was not significantly different from that in the intact male. A concentration of cytochrome P-450 characteristic of females was restored by two anterior pituitary transplants under the kidney capsule of hypophysectomized females; a partial 'feminization' occurred in similarly treated hypophysectomized males. A partial 'feminization' was also achieved by the administration of rat or sheep prolactin to hypophysectomized females. Unexpectedly, the administration of l-dihydroxyphenylalanine to normal females was without effect on cytochrome P-450, whereas in intact males 'feminization' resulted. Castration of adult rats resulted in the 'feminization' of cytochrome P-450, whereas ovariectomy was without effect. Administration of testosterone propionate for 10 days, either immediately after the operation or 14 weeks later to rats castrated when adult failed, however, to reverse the fall in cytochrome P-450. The establishment of a higher concentration of cytochrome P-450 in the liver of female rats could not be brought about by the administration of testosterone propionate, whether given as a single dose on the second day after birth or as a 10-day course of treatment after puberty or both. It is concluded that the sex difference in hepatic microsomal cytochrome P-450 is maintained by the release in the female of an anterior pituitary factor(s) that serves to depress its concentration. The factor(s) shows some of the characteristics of prolactin but the findings are not consistent with that hormone being responsible for all of the effects observed. The release of the factor(s) in the male may be inhibited by a compound of gonadal origin other than testosterone. A sex difference could not be 'imprinted' in the female by either neonatal and/or postpubertal testosterone treatment. The concentration of hepatic microsomal cytochrome b5 and the specific activity of NADPH-cytochrome c reductase were found not to be sex-dependent in the rats used. However, anterior pituitary factor(s) other than prolactin and growth hormone act to suppress partially the concentration of the former and to promote the specific activity of the latter in the endoplasmic reticulum of rat hepatocytes.


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