Decreased serum testosterone response to gonadotropin-releasing hormone in male offspring of diabetic female rats.
A study was designed to examine the testicular function of male offspring rats produced by diabetic dams. A marked decrease in testosterone response to exogenous administration of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) was found in male offspring of female rats made diabetic by administration of streptozotocin during early pregnancy. Control rats responded to GnRH with a marked increase in serum testosterone within 4-h postinjection. Male offspring of diabetic female rats demonstrated an unexpected decrease in serum testosterone in response to GnRH when compared with saline-injected rats. The results suggest that a defect in Leydig cell function may occur in the male offspring of diabetic female rats. However, a decreased release of pituitary LH in response to exogenous GnRH stimulation cannot be excluded as a cause of the lower testosterone values.
Bender
H S
HS
Department of Pathobiology, Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, Blacksburg.
King
C S
CS
Lin
Y C
YC
D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D010906:Pituitary Hormone-Releasing Hormones / Q000494:pharmacology; D011247:Pregnancy; D011254:Pregnancy in Diabetics; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D013737:Testis / Q000196:embryology / Q000502:physiology; D013739:Testosterone / Q000097:blood*
D010906:Pituitary Hormone-Releasing Hormones; D013739:Testosterone