The thymus gland in relation to sex hormones and reproductive processes in the albino rat

Plagge, James C.

doi:10.1002/jmor.1050680306

Cited by 30 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…Androsterone and testosterone propionate were found to be the . most effective (16 terone, and various estrogens. All were found to produce thymic involution.…”

Section: Chapter II Review Of the Literature Steroid Hormones And Lymmentioning

confidence: 99%

Androgen-induced immunosuppression

Weyant¹

2000

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It is wel females are more immunocompetent than males as evidenced by higher humoral antibody titers, iowered· susceptibility to infection, ~d more efficient graft rejection.Furthermore, females also exhibit a much-higher inc~dence ot ~uto-immune disease. In order to amplify the sensitivity of the responding system, we then elected to study testosterone immunosuppression in a regenerating hemopoietic system which was recovering from the ablative effects of sublethal irradiation.It w~s observed, using ~rradiated mice, that orchidectomy resulted in striking immunoenhancement, where as testosterone treatment produced suppression of the antibody response to S~BC immunization.A possible mechanism for the testosterone effect consisting of a preferential differentiation of the regenerating stem cell population ~long the myeloid pathway was explored. Differential white blood cell counts indicated that testosterone administration can produce a reversal ot the granulocyte:lymphocyte ratio resulting in a marked granulocytosis ~ith acco~panying lymphopenia. Interestingly, in one experiment where testosterone had been observed to induce this reversal of the granulocyte:lymphocyte ratio at eight weeks following irradiation, by 12 week~ the blood picture had returned to normal. However, marked immunosuppression was still evldent in these animals. 3These data have suggested that the immunosuppression pro~uced by testosterone may be the result of a preferential differentiat~on of.the regenerating stem cell population along the myeloid pathway, with a concurrent suppression of lymphocyte production. Furthermore, evidence suggests that there may be a selective sensitivity of one immunocyte subpopulation to testosterone modulation of differentiation. ANDROGEN-INDUCED IHMUHOSUPPRESSIONby DEBRA ANN WEY~T

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“…Androsterone and testosterone propionate were found to be the . most effective (16 terone, and various estrogens. All were found to produce thymic involution.…”

Section: Chapter II Review Of the Literature Steroid Hormones And Lymmentioning

confidence: 99%

Androgen-induced immunosuppression

Weyant¹

2000

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“…Female hormones have been found to induce acute involution of the thymus in prepubertal rats (Golding and Ramirez, 1928;Carriere, Morel and Gineste, 1937;Plagge, 1941;Money, Fager and Rawson, 1952) and in large doses oestrogen produces agranulocytosis and lymphopenia in dogs (Dougherty, Wrilliams and Gardner, 1943). On the other hand, male hormones have been found to produce atrophy of the thymus in normal and castrated animals (Andreasen, 1937;Chiodi, 1.938;Baez-Villasenor, Rath and Finch, 1948) but it has been reported that androgen administration has no effect on the level of the peripheral blood lymphocytes (Crafts, 1946).…”

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confidence: 99%

The effect of sex hormones on the growth of HeLa tumour nodules in male and female mice

Franks¹,

Perkins²,

Bshop³

1975

Br J Cancer

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Summary.-The effect of exogenous sex hormones on the cell mediated response in male and female mice has been studied by measuring the subcutaneous growth of HeLa tumour nodules and the variation in the total lymphocyte count. It was found that oestrogen treated male and female mice experienced a profound lymphopenia which was vary rapid in onset. Concurrent with the lymphopenia there was prolongation of HeLa tumour nodule growth in female mice, but not in males. A lymphopenia occurred in androgen treated male mice with subsequent prolongation of HeLa tumour nodule growth, and a lymphocytosis in female mice, with reduction of HeLa tumour nodule growth.

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“…They suggested that other organs, particularly lymph nodes, might have thymic functions. Plagge (1941) has concluded that the thymus glands of male and female albino rats are definitely sensitive to varying concentrations of sex hormones as indicated by gross changes in the thymus at puberty and by both gross and histological changes following castration or injections of sex hormones. Thymectomy does not affect the reproduction system of either sex.…”

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confidence: 98%