Changes in Glycoproteins in Serum, Urine and Aqueous Humor After Gonadectomy or Sex Hormone Injections in Rats

Abstract

The quantitative changes in serum, urinary and aqueous humor glycoproteins, the degree of polymerization of acid mucopolysaccharides, and the rhythmic crystallization of aqueous humor were studied in rats of both sexes in relation to gonadal function and the effects of sex steroids. In female rats, serum, urinary and aqueous humor glycoproteins changed during the sexual cycle. These changes disappeared after castration. The administration of estradiol benzoate to castrated rats produced the same changes observed during estrus, that is to say, an increase in serum glycoproteins and a decrease in urinary and aqueous humor glycoproteins. Progesterone produced similar but less marked effects than estrogens, but only when high doses of it were given. Castration in males produced different alterations in the glycoproteins studied than in females; these changes were reversed by the administration of testosterone propionate. This hormone decreased serum and urinary glycoproteins and increased aqueous humor glycoproteins in castrated male rats. (Endocrinology74: 825, 1964)