EFFECTS OF ANTERIOR PITUITARY EXTRACTS IN THE FASTED RAT

Abstract

AI NCREASED RETENTION of nitrogen in animals given extracts of the anterior pituitary containing the growth promoting fraction has been reported by several investigators. Teel and Cushing (1) observed that dogs on a constant diet showed a marked retention of nitrogen following the injection of an alkaline extract of anterior pituitary. Gaebler (2), as a result of carefully controlled balance studies, pointed out that the injection of an anterior pituitary extract into the normal dog kept on a high protein diet resulted in a decrease in urinary excretion of nitrogen which for periods of one or two days was as great as 50%. Lee and Schaffer (3), using the paired feeding technic, showed that rats treated with anterior pituitary extract gained more weight than their untreated controls. Analyses of the carcasses of the rats revealed a higher nitrogen content in the treated rats than in their litter-mate controls.