STEROID FEEDBACK ON LUTEINIZING HORMONE SECRETION DURING SEXUAL MATURATION IN THE PIG

The effects of gonadal secretions on the release of LH and the stimulation of LH secretion by oestradiol have been investigated in newborn male and female miniature pigs; the differences in the feedback action of testosterone in newborn and pubertal male pigs were also studied. Hemi-orchidectomy or orchidectomy of 1-week-old pigs had no effect on the level of LH in the plasma; total orchidectomy significantly reduced the levels of testosterone (P less than 0.01) and progesterone (P less than 0.05). In female pigs ovariectomized at 1 week of age, the concentration of LH in the plasma decreased, with a strong negative correlation between the level of LH and age (r = -0.41; P less than 0.05). The plasma concentration of progesterone was generally low and unaffected by ovariectomy. Orchidectomy and treatment of male pigs, at 1 week of age, with testosterone (6 mg/kg body weight) had no effect on the plasma concentration of testosterone 24 h after treatment. If testosterone propionate was given rather than testosterone, the level of LH was significantly reduced (P less than 0.001) 24 h after the injection and the concentration of testosterone in the plasma corresponded to that found in the intact adult male pig. Treatment with oestradiol or oestradiol benzoate did not affect the concentration of LH. Orchidectomy and treatment of pubertal male pigs with testosterone propionate resulted in a significantly (P less than 0.001) higher concentration of testosterone in the plasma, compared with newborn pigs treated similarly, but the level of LH was unchanged. This suggests that there is a more rapid rate of clearance of testosterone in the newborn than in the pubertal male miniature pig and that the negative feedback of testosterone is not mediated by aromatization in the newborn animal and it declines before or during puberty. Treatment of newborn intact male and female and gonadectomized male pigs with oestradiol benzoate produced similar variations in the plasma level of oestradiol in all groups of animals. In the female pigs, however, a surge-like release of LH was observed 60--72 h after the injection of oestradiol benzoate, suggesting that the stimulatory feedback mechanism can operate soon after birth and that the response is sexually dimorphic.