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and the flask placed in the refrigerator over night to allow the serum to
separate. The serum was then drawn into a sterile syringe and injected
subcutaneously in the abdominal region of the test animals after treating
the site of injection with cotton saturated in 50 per cent alcohol.
In this work we established the normal genital tract of rats 26, 27 and
28 days old by killing them at that age and weighing their genital tracts.
Abundant evidence exists that these animals never come into oestrum
at this age under normal conditions.
Test animals. The test animals consisted of rats and mice either of
which are satisfactory for the purpose. In our work a larger number of
rats were used because they were available. In general the animals were
used at weaning time (21 days). However, it was found entirely practical
to vary the age from 18 to 23 days.
Ninety-six hours from the time of the first injection smears were taken,
the animals weighed and killed with chloroform. The abdominal cavity
was opened and the uterus severed from the vagina with scissors and
removed with the ovaries intact. The uterus and ovaries were weighed
together after which the ovaries and oviducts with bursae were separated
from the horns of the uterus and weighed separately. The excess fat
was removed previous to weighing without the use of binoculars. If one
wishes merely to determine the presence of the factor or factors effecting
sexual maturity in the blood this crude method is satisfactory but if it is
desired to study the effect of varying doses it cannot be used. In such
casesthe oviducts and bursae were removed under the binoculars because
this gave us a more accurate means of comparing the ovaries of the test
animals with those of the controls.
After weighing, the tissues were placed in Bouin’s solution and a large
number of the ovaries were sectioned serially. In some cases control
animals were used in this work which were the same age as the injected
animals, but were not in all caseslitter mates.
Positive results in the test animals were in some casesconfirmed with
a later diagnosis of pregnancy in the mares by means of manual examina-
tion of the uterus per rectum. This is somewhat more difficult in the
mare than in the cow because of greater pressure being exerted on the arm
and a higher degree of tension of the rectal walls, rendering slight changes
in size or tone of the uterus unrecognizable. However, between the third
and fourth month of pregnancy the developing fetus can usually be felt
by ballottement through the rectal and uterine walls and this is sound
evidence on which to base a positive diagnosis.
On September 28th we definitely established the existence of pregnancy
in the following mares by this method:
No. 3 at 115 days
No. 4 at 116 days
TABLE 1
Data on reactions in immature rats and mice caustid by serum from mares at various
periods of pregnant y
RESULT
FE-MALE RATS
OR MICE
INJECTED
Vagina
.r(k!? 3
2 2 z
: 8 5
cc. mom.
9 B 390 26 2 6 30 - + Closed 0
MI422 26 5 1 30 - - Closed le
w 394 26 7 1 20 - - Closed 0
4 3s G 449 24 4 6 54 - - Closed le
G 450 26 7 1 54 55 30 - - Closed le
4 42 G 456 26 4 6 48 170 30 -
+ Closed 0
G 457 26 7 1 46 195 30 -
+ Closed Corn
TABLE l-Concluded
RESCLT
FEMALE RATS
OR MICE
INJECTED
2 F2fii
.I+ Vagina
z 5
0
the 222nd day and perhaps until the end of pregnancy, although at the
222nd day it was necessary to inject 30 cc. of serum in order to produce
the effect.
Injection of varying size doses from the same sample of blood. Injections
of serum from mares in different stages of pregnancy showed varying
reactions in the ovaries of the injected rats. At certain stages medium
doses produced maximal reactions. At this time we could vary the
changes in the ovary from an enlargement of a single follicle to maximal
reaction by simply varying the dose in different animals from the same
samDle of serum. l?or example, we took serum from a mare 78 days
pregnant and injected doses varying from K$-qcc. to 16 cc. into 73 rats.
Eight controls were kept with this group, two of which received injections
of physiological salt solution.
Animals receiving T&T cc. of serum showed no reaction in the genital
system. One out of four animals receiving & cc. gave a definite reaction
in the vagina and uterus, but showed no increase in the size of the ovary;
two animals out of four receiving -&q cc. and four animals out of four
receiving i&a cc. showed similar reactions. Serial sectioning of these
ovaries revealed that in most instances the test ovaries could be differ-
entiated from the control ovaries by an increase in size of a single follicle.
In other words, the reaction produced was identical in character to that
obtained by injecting serum taken between the 37th and 42nd day of
pregnancy. The ovaries of two out of four animals receiving -&- cc. were
definitely enlarged and ovaries from animals receiving larger doses were
uniformly larger than ovaries from control animals.
Histological examination of the ovaries of rats receiving +$ or -& of a
cc. of the serum showed a marked increase in the size of a single follicle
and usually of many follicles. The size of the follicles in many cases was
double the size of the largest follicles of the control ovaries. These doses
not only caused changes in the size of the follicles, but also produced
further maturing signs in the follicles. The width of the stratum granu-
losum was greatly reduced, there being only two or three layers of granu-
losa cells in the wall of the follicle opposite the ovum. Occasionally a
slight amount of luteinization could be discerned beneath the superficial
granulosa layer. It was common to find both polar bodies formed from
the ova in the ripe follicles, although the ova were still loosely attached
to the stratum granulosum by the discus proligerus. The shedding of
the corona radiata by these ripe ova was commonly observed and occa-
sionally an ovum had divided into several segments. In instances in
which the corona radiata was shed from the ovum, there often appeared
the so called Call-Exner bodies in the granulosa cells of the discus pro-
ligerus. In one instance the rupturing of one follicle into an adjacent
follicle was observed so that both ova were seen in the same follicle. The
character of the ovaries just described simulated those from animals
receiving serum from mares pregnant beyond the period of highest con-
centration of the hormone in their blood.
Ovaries from rats receiving 0.2 cc. showed luteinization of the larger
follicles regularly and very often the remaining antrum was filled with
red blood cells forming the blood points described by Aschheim and
Zondek (1928). Increase of dosage up to 0.5 cc. resulted in the maturing
of a larger number of follicles as well as increased luteinization and the
more constant appearance of blood points within one or more follicles of
the ovary. It is evident that luteinization and the formation of blood
points result only from the larger doses of blood serum administered.
Doses greater than 0.5 cc. failed in further stimulation of the ovarian
response. Figure 2 shows that the average response of four animals as
regards the weight of their ovaries was greater when 0.5 cc. was injected
than at any other level. There is a wide divergence in the weights of
ovaries from rats receiving similar size doses and it is impossible to attach
any significance to this peak because of the relatively small number of
animals used at each level. However, it would be of interest to know
that an excess dose tended to inhibit the ovarian response.
Ovaries from animals receiving 0.5 cc. or more and killed ninety-six
hours after the first injection did not show any signs of ovulation having
taken place and the ova could be found within the luteinized follicle in an
altered stage as evidenced by loss of its corona radiata and changes in its
staining properties. However, ovulation had taken place in some of the
follicles when the animals were killed 120 hours after the first injection.
The results obtained by injecting 0.5 cc. or more of the serum were
similar to those resulting from injections of serum taken from pregnant
mares during the period of highest concentration of the hormone in their
blood.
Assuming -&-a cc. to be the minimal dose, with which 50 per cent of
the injected animals reacted, it took ten times this dose before definite
cc.
Cvfl~iG-
0.002
0.003 r
0.005 I
o.o/
0.05
O./
0./5
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
f.0
2.0
4.0
8.0 / /WEc77ON
8.0 //K/IFt77tWY.S
8.0 8 /IY-JEiZ’tzW’.5
f6.0 4 /NJZ7-..CWS
16.0
0 25 75
OF OVARIES
Fig. 2. Graph showing effect of varying doses of serum upon the size of the ovaries
of immature rats. This blood was taken from mare 4 on the seventy-eighth day of
pregnancy. Weights of ovaries represent average of the rats in each group. The
oviducts and bursae were removed before weighing.
from mare 4 taken on the 112th day of pregnancy gave a greater increase
in the size of the ovaries than 12 cc. of serum from mare 3 at the same
stage of pregnancy.
In order to ascertain if folliculin as well as anterior hypophyseal hor-
mone was present in pregnant mares normal female mature and im-
mature rats were spayed and allowed to recover from the operation.
Serum was taken from mare 4 on the 121st day of pregnancy. Four
spayed rats were injected with 10 cc. per day of the serum and after 72
hours showed a reaction in the vagina by the presence of an oestrous
smear. Four unspayed rats injected with 1 cc. of the serum and killed
at 96 hours showed positive reactions in the ovaries. In this particular
case 30 cc. of serum were required to produce the folliculin reaction whereas
1 cc. was sufficient to demonstrate the sex maturing hormone.
Serum taken at the 178th day of pregnancy from mare 7 did not pro-
duce any reaction in the ovaries of immature rats but did produce a
reaction in the uteri and vaginae when 25 cc. were injected and from this
point on until the 222nd day it was impossible to get a response in the
ovaries. Tests have not been made later than the 222nd day of preg-
nancy. One mare was tested two weeks before foaling but only 12 cc. of
serum were administered and it is possible that the negative reaction
obtained at this time was because of the relatively small amount of serum
injected in comparison with the amount that we know must be injected
at the 178th to the 222nd day of pregnancy in order to produce a reaction.
During this work a total of 51 male rats and 7 male mice were injected
with varying doses of serum that produced positive reactions in the
females. With this number of injected animals there were maintained
35 controls. In all cases when the serum was at a high concentration there
was an increase in the size of the testes of the injected rats in proportion
to their body weights as compared to the controls. In many instances
the increase in the size of the testes was small, never being more than
double that of the controls. We have not taken into consideration a
study of the accessory organs in the male. Due to the relatively small
margin of difference between the injected animals and the controls, the
males did not prove to be as satisfactory as the females in this work.
DISCUSSION OF RESULTS. It is significant to know that in the horse
there are four typical reactions obtained varying in degree and in parts
of the genital tract affected, depending upon the stage of pregnancy.
The earliest reaction from the 37th to the 42nd days of pregnancy is
probably a reaction of the sex maturing hormone of the anterior hypoph-
ysis. Although changes in the ovary are slight the possibility of these
changes being sufficient to induce changes in the uterus and vagina must
be considered. We showed that we could induce similar changes by the
injection of minute doses of serum known to contain the sex maturing
(1928). That the much later appearance of this substance in the blood of
the pregnant mare coincides with the later time of implantation is evi-
dence to support the idea that this hormone may come to its highest con-
centration in the blood during the period of implantation on which very
important part of intra-uterine life it may exercise some influence.
That the reaction obtained in immature rats by the injection of serum
taken from mares 45 to 120 days after breeding are of great value in
diagnosing pregnancy is beyond doubt. This is the period of time in
which the diagnosis is of greatest value. During this period one is im-
pressed with the uniform results obtained. A total of 184 testanimals
were used with positive reacting sera and only 13 of this number showed
negative reactions. These 13 animals were all in tests of blood from two
mares and received a single injection of 0.3 cc. or less. Therefore in
diagnosis of pregnancy tests we think the use of two test animals twenty-
one days of age is all that is necessary and from our work a single injection
of 5 cc. gives a large margin of safety for the elicitation of the reaction.
We have some evidence that there is a reduction in the concentration
of the hypophyseal hormone and an increase of folliculin late in pregnancy.
Under such circumstances larger doses will be necessary to produce reac-
tions in the test animals but other means of diagnosing pregnancy in the
mare are available during this period. In case there should be sufficient
folliculin in t,he blood stream at the time of active heat to elicit a reaction,
which we have not eliminated, this still would not be a serious defect in
the method because a test for the diagnosis of pregnancy would not be
made at this time. When this test is made upon mares without breeding
histories negative results would not eliminate a pregnancy of less than six
weeks duration.
SUMMARY
The blood of 62 mares was tested for its potency in inducing the sexual
maturity of immature rats. Serum from non-pregnant mares was nega-
tive in all instances as was the serum of mares up to the 37th day of
pregnancy. The time of pregnancy at which the serum first gave a posi-
tive reaction varied in different individuals from the 37th to the 42nd
day. Between the 43rd and 80th day of pregnancy the serum had the
most marked effect upon the size of the ovaries of the test animals. At
this time medium doses produced marked enlargement and extensive
histological alterations of the ovaries of the experimental animals. At
later stages of pregnancy the reactions to the injections of the serum
were confined to changes in the uterus and vagina.
A correlation was observed to exist between the period of high concen-
tration of anterior hypophyseal hormone in the serum and the time of
implantation in the mare.
We were able with the same sample of serum given in varying doses to
demonstrate a quantitative relationship between the amount injected
and the reaction manifested in the ovary at definite stages of pregnancy.
The presence of the anterior hypophyseal sex maturing hormone in the
circulating blood of pregnant mares may be used as a means of diagnosing
pregnancy of six to seven weeks duration in these animals,
This reaction continues until about the 100th day of pregnancy. Later
reactions are characterized by changes in the uterus and vagina only and
are probably elicited by folliculin. Tests were not made beyond the
222nd day of pregnancy.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
ASCHHEIRI, S. AND B. ZONDEK. 1928. Klin. 1T70chenschr., vii, 1404.
FELS, E. 1926. Klin. Wochenschr., v, 2349.
FRANK, R. T., M. L. FRANK, R. G. GUSTAVSON AND W. W. WYERTS. 1925. Journ.
Amer. Med. Assoc., lxxxv: 510.
HAMLMOSD, J. 1927. The physiology of reproduction in the cow. Univ. Pxws,
Cambridge, 145147.
KEIREL, F. AND F. P. MALL. 1910. Manual of human embryology. Vol. I, J. B.
Lippincott & Co., Philadelphia, 120.
KOLSTER, R. 1901-2. Anatomische Hefte, Band xviii, Heft ii, 457.
LOEWE, S. 1925. Klin. Wochenschr., iv, 1407.
SMITII, P. E. ASD E. T. ENGLE. 1927. Amer. Journ. Anat., iv, 159.
ZONDEK, B. AXD S. ASCHIIEIM. 1927. Arch. f. GynUkol., cxxx, 1.