STUDIES WITH FRAGMENTS OF A HIGHLY ACTIVE ANALOGUE OF LUTEINIZING HORMONE RELEASING HORMONE

1979 ◽  
Vol 81 (2) ◽  
pp. 175-182 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. SANDOW ◽  
W. KÖNIG

The minimal structural requirements for gonadotrophin releasing activity were studied with fragments of a highly active analogue of luteinizing hormone releasing hormone (LH-RH), [d-Ser(But)6]LH-RH(1–9)nonapeptide-ethylamide (Hoe 766). All fragments are related to the C-terminal structure of LH-RH and have increased enzyme stability. Ovulation in phenobarbitone-blocked rats was induced with a median effective dose/rat, of 1·9 μg of the (3–9)-heptapeptide, Trp-Ser-Tyr-d-Ser(But)-Leu-Arg-Pro-ethylamide and 6·8, 18·0 and 38·3 μg for the (4–9), (5–9) and (6–9) fragments respectively. The (3–9)-heptapeptide and (4–9)-hexapeptide induced release of LH and FSH in phenobarbitone-blocked rats with a ratio similar to that of LH-RH. Degradation of LH-RH by enzyme preparations of liver, kidney and hypothalamic or anterior pituitary tissue was not modified by addition of the (3–9)-heptapeptide fragment. The organ distribution of the 125I-labelled (3–9)-heptapeptide fragments was similar to LH-RH, but not to Hoe 766. The peptide accumulated in liver and kidney, but was eliminated from the anterior pituitary gland 15 min after i.v. injection, whereas Hoe 766 showed progressive accumulation in the pituitary gland (tissue: plasma ratio = 6·6 after 60 min). In contrast to C-terminal fragments of LH-RH, the corresponding fragments of nonapeptide analogues retained significant biological activity, and the minimal structural requirements for LH release may be related to the C-terminal sequence of LH-RH.

1979 ◽  
Vol 80 (1) ◽  
pp. 141-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. D. SWIFT ◽  
D. B. CRIGHTON

The abilities of three nonapeptide analogues of synthetic luteinizing hormone releasing hormone (LH-RH) to release luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) in anoestrous and cyclic ewes were examined, as were their elimination from the plasma in vivo and degradation by extracts of the hypothalamus, anterior pituitary gland, lung, kidney, liver and plasma in vitro. In all cases, comparisons were made with synthetic LH-RH. When injected i.v. into mature ewes as a single dose, the potencies of the analogues were graded and Des Gly-NH210 LH-RH ethylamide was found to be the least potent. It was not possible to demonstrate any significant increase in the potency of this analogue over LH-RH, although a trend was apparent with each parameter examined. [d-Ser(But)6] Des Gly-NH210 LH-RH ethylamide had the greatest potency. There were no differences between the responses of anoestrous ewes and those of ewes treated on day 10 of the oestrous cycle. None of the analogues had a rate of elimination from the plasma different from that of LH-RH during either the first or the second components of the biphasic disappearance curve. The incubation of LH-RH with tissue extracts showed that extracts of the hypothalamus and anterior pituitary gland degraded LH-RH to a similar extent. Both the hypothalamic and anterior pituitary gland extracts degraded more LH-RH than did lung extract, which in turn destroyed more LH-RH than did extracts of kidney or liver tissue. The degradative abilities of kidney and liver extracts did not differ from each other. Plasma failed to degrade LH-RH or the analogues. Although LH-RH was rapidly destroyed by hypothalamic extract in vitro, of the analogues, only Des Gly-NH210 LH-RH ethylamide was degraded. The anterior pituitary gland and kidney extracts failed to degrade [d-Ser6] Des Gly-NH210 LH-RH ethylamide and [d-Ser(But)6] Des Gly-NH210 LH-RH ethylamide as rapidly as LH-RH. Extracts of liver and lung were incapable of catabolizing any of the analogues. There was an inverse correlation between the LH- and FSH-releasing potency of an analogue and its rate of degradation by anterior pituitary gland extract. The slower rates of catabolism of certain analogues of LH-RH by the anterior pituitary gland may explain their increased LH- and FSH-releasing potency.


1981 ◽  
Vol 91 (2) ◽  
pp. 347-351 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. MEIDAN ◽  
G. FINK ◽  
Y. KOCH

The ontogeny of the facilitatory effect of oestradiol and luteinizing hormone releasing hormone (LH-RH) on the responsiveness of the anterior pituitary gland to LH-RH has been studied in vitro using pituitary glands from female rats aged 15, 17, 20, 31, 35 and 38 days. The facilitatory effect of oestradiol was already well established by day 15, while the facilitatory effect of LH-RH (priming effect) developed only after day 17. Although it increased the overall response of the gland to LH-RH, oestradiol did not selectively enhance the priming effect of LH-RH. Both the effect of oestradiol and LH-RH reached a peak on day 25, 7 days before vaginal opening in this colony, and, as assessed by measuring pituitary LH contents, were not dependent upon the synthesis of LH. These data show that different mechanisms may be involved in the facilitation of pituitary responsiveness by oestradiol and LH-RH, but that both mechanisms appear to depend more upon an increase in the sensitivity of the receptor/release apparatus rather than in the gonadotrophin content of the gonadotrophs.


1978 ◽  
Vol 76 (3) ◽  
pp. 487-491 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. YAMASHITA ◽  
M. MIENO ◽  
T. SHIMIZU ◽  
ER. YAMASHITA

The rate of secretion of 17-oxosteroids by the testes of anaesthetized dogs in vivo was used as an index of LH secretion. Intracarotid injection of luteinizing hormone releasing hormone (LH-RH, 1, 5 or 10 μg/kg body wt) resulted in an increase in the testicular 17-oxosteroid secretion which was roughly proportional to the dose administered and which reached a maximum 60 min after the injection. Testicular output of 17-oxosteroids was unaffected by administration of melatonin (10 or 100 μg/kg body wt) into the carotid artery. When LH-RH (5 μg/kg) was injected into the carotid artery 3 h after intracarotid injection of melatonin (10 or 100 μg/kg), the testicular response to LH-RH was considerably diminished. Pretreatment with melatonin (100 μg/kg) did not alter the testicular response to human chorionic gonadotrophin (20 i.u./kg body wt) given i.v. It is concluded that melatonin may act directly on the anterior pituitary gland in dogs to inhibit the LH-RH-induced release of LH.


1977 ◽  
Vol 74 (2) ◽  
pp. 291-296 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. M. FRASER ◽  
J. SANDOW

Immunization against luteinizing hormone releasing hormone (LH-RH) in adult male rats produced a progressive decline in LH and FSH in the circulation to low or non-detectable levels. d-Serine-tertiary-butyl6,des-glycine-NH210 LH-RH ethylamide is an analogue of LH-RH having highly active LH-RH properties in the normal rat. Because it is also immunologically different from LH-RH it can stimulate gonadotrophin release from the anterior pituitary gland of rats immunized against LH-RH without interference from the antibody. The analogue stimulated LH and FSH release in rats 15 weeks after immunization against LH-RH when antibody titre was highest, and after long-term (35 weeks) immunization against LH-RH. d-Serine-tertiary-butyl6,des-glycine-NH210 LH-RH ethylamide and related analogues are therefore potentially useful for reversing the effects of immunization against LH-RH.


1974 ◽  
Vol 76 (3) ◽  
pp. 431-437 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Morishita ◽  
H. Mitani ◽  
Y. Masuda ◽  
K. Higuchi ◽  
M. Tomioka ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT The effect of synthetic luteinizing hormone releasing hormone (LH-RH) on ovulation has been studied during the oestrous cycle in adult female rats. Ovulation could be induced by the administration of 1 μg synthetic LH-RH at 1:00 a. m. on the day of dioestrus II (lights on from 10:00 p.m. to 10:00 a.m.). At 1:00 a.m. on the day of dioestrus II, the average volume of the largest follicles reached a volume of 83 × 106 μm3 and was three fifth of the volume of that at 6:00 a. m. on the day of pro-oestrus (critical period). These findings suggest that the luteinizing hormone (LH) content in the pituitary gland during the early period of dioestrus II is sufficient to induce ovulation and that the follicles that reach to three fifth of the volume at the critical period are capable of ovulating providing endogenous ovulatory LH released.


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