THE HYPOPHYSEAL-LIKE QUALITIES OF THE GONADOTROPIC PRINCIPLE FOUND IN THE URINE OF CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS

Abstract

The physiological action of a. follicle-stimulating substance occurring in the urine of a woman past the menopause and who suffered from migraine, was studied. Extracts of this urine (FSU) injected in immature hypophysectomized rats in which a sufficient post-operative period had elapsed for the ovaries to undergo pronounced atrophy, matured a large number of follicles strikingly uniform in size. Even in the longer treatments (10 days) luteinization but rarely occurred. The treatment did not induce an hypertrophy of the interstitial or the theca cells. The reparative effect seemed to be complete. The changes were the opposite in every respect from those induced in hypophysectomized rats by injections of pregnancy-urine (PU) extracts. In 2 rats in which an extract of FSU was injected, a subsequent intraperitoneal injection of PU extract induced ovulation. In one case the number of eggs liberated was greatly in excess of the normal number. Estrin was produced by the ovaries stimulated with FSU extract. There was a synergistic action, "augmentation," when an extract of this urine waa injected concurrently with PU. In the production of "augmentation" the extract of FSU can thus be substituted for the pituitary gonadotropic extract. The gonadotropic principle in this FSU appears to fulfill the requirements postulated for an anterior-pituitary, follicle-stimulating hormone.