OBSERVATIONS ON A DITHIOCARBAMOYLHYDRAZINE AS AN INHIBITOR OF PITUITARY GONADOTROPHIC ACTIVITY

Abstract

SUMMARY A dithiocarbamoylhydrazine (ICI 33828) was injected s.c. into intact rats and mice. It usually caused a reduction in weight of the uterus or of the accessory organs in the male, but less commonly of the gonads. As little as 0·5 mg. daily for 4 days caused significant effects in adult female rats, while half this dose on alternate days retarded maturation in male rats. ICI 33828 was injected with exogenous gonadotrophin in three systems of assay and in some cases it modified the response to the gonadotrophin. This may not be due to a specific effect at the gonadal level but either to suppression of endogenous gonadotrophins in the test animals or to the effect of ICI 33828 on their general condition. Pituitary glands from male rats treated with ICI 33828 were assayed for follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and found to contain significantly less than glands from control rats. This suggests that ICI 33828 acts by reducing the formation of pituitary gonadotrophin.