Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Endocrinology and Metabolism, Supplement, cilt.4, sa.A, ss.79, 1997 (Scopus)
Growth hormone (GH) acts as a growth and differentiation factor for the thymus gland. Gonadotropins stimulate thymic epithelial cells (TEC) for the modulation of thymic endocrine function. It has been shown that TEC synthesize GH in thymus1. The aim of this study was to observe the effects of GH and human menopausal gonadotropin (hMG) on GH producing thymic cells in immature rat thymus. In this study, 24 Wistar female immature rats (aged 21 days) were used: (1) hGH (Norditropin) 0.0033 IU/50 g BW/day s.c.(n = 8), (2) hMG 0.125 IU/ 50 g BW/day s.c.(n = 8) were administered (3) control rats (n=8). Treatments were ceased on 45 days of age and the animals were sacrificed under ether anesthesia. Tissue sections were immunostained by Pab GH using PAP technique. As compared with controls, the thymic medulla and cortex sizes in the GH group increased significantly (p0.001 although there was no difference in the hMG group. GH immunoreactive cells were detected within the cortex, cortex-medulla zone (C/M), medulla and rarely in septa in all groups. The immunoreactive cells were irregular and ovoid in shape with pale staining nuclei. A significant increase (p0.01) in total GH immunoreactive cells was observed in both GH and hMG groups as compared with controls. In GH group this increase was observed in both cortex and medulla (p0.02) while in hMG group it was only in C/M. Our data suggest that GH and hMG may stimulate GH production in immature thymus by acting as a grown and/or modulation factor.