title: [Plasma testosterone level and structure of the epididymis and accessory organs of the boar (Sus scrofa L.) after hypophysectomy followed by hCG gonadotropin administration].
abstract: Hypophysectomy of the boar resulted in a rapid drop in plasma testosterone level. hCG injections (400 IU/day) considerably elevated testosteronemia (up to 16.41 ng/ml). This effect was obtained either in the days following the operation or several months after (up to 134 days). In the latter case, the effect was temporary because the testosterone level dropped again after 15 days of injections. The sexual target organs (epididymis, seminal vesicle, prostate and Cowper glands) underwent structural change which, in the epithelium, corresponded to fluctuations in testosterone level. These effects were less marked in the cauda epididymis than in other target tissues. In various target organs, the conjunctivomuscular stroma developed after the operation; it did not regress at all, or incompletely, when the epithelia were stimulated indirectly by hCG, and began to hypertrophy when the hCG was no longer effective. Variations in stromal reaction were organ-dependent. When the hCG was administered for more than 14 days, it seemed to have a desensitizing effect; these mechanisms have been discussed.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002030:Bulbourethral Glands / Q000473:pathology; D006063:Chorionic Gonadotropin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004822:Epididymis / Q000473:pathology; D005837:Genitalia, Male / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology*; D006984:Hypertrophy; D007016:Hypophysectomy; D008297:Male; D011467:Prostate / Q000473:pathology; D012669:Seminal Vesicles / Q000473:pathology; D013552:Swine; D013739:Testosterone / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D006063:Chorionic Gonadotropin; D013739:Testosterone
vernacular_title: Effets de l-hypophysectomie puis de l'administration de la gonadotropine hCG sur le taux de testostérone plasmatique et sur la structure de l'épididyme et des glandes accessoires chez le verrat (Sus scrofa L.).