Summary
With the method of Rohr et al. (1971) the outer zona fasciculata of Sprague-Dawley-rats was compared ultramorphometrically in 5 groups of 4 animals each: males, females during diestrus, females during estrus, male and female castrates (castration on 4th day of life).
Adrenal cortical cells of the outer fasciculata in females are hypertrophic in comparison with those of normal males: females during diestrus show in comparison with males larger individual cells with increased SER, increased volume of the individual mitochondrium and total volume of mitochondria as well as an increased lipoid content together with a more pronounced dispersion of liposomes. The same function-specific structures show a further increase in females during estrus. Castration of females on the 4th day of life leads to a reduction of the function-specific morphometric parameters below the values of the diestrus animals. Male castrates show adaption of the values of their function-specific structures towards those of females during diestrus. Following castration on the 4th day of life, female animals thus show somewhat lower morphometric parameters in the outer zona fasciculata than male castrates.
Zusammenfassung
Ultramorphometrisch wurde nach dem Verfahren von Rohr et al. (1971) die äußere Zona fasciculata von Sprague-Dawley-Ratten bei 5 Gruppen zu je 4 Tieren verglichen: Männchen, Weibchen im Diöstrus, Weibchen im Östrus, männliche und weibliche Kastraten (Kastration am 4. Lebenstag).
Die Nebennierenrindenzellen der äu\eren Fasciculata sind bei Weibchen gegenüber denen normaler Männchen hypertroph: Weibchen im Diöstrus zeigen gegenüber Männchen größere Einzelzellen mit vermehrtem glattem endoplasmatischem Reticulum, erhöhten Einzel- und Gesamtvolumina der Mitochondrien sowie einem höheren Lipoidgehalt bei stärkerer Dispersion der Liposomen. Dieselben funktionsspezifischen Strukturen nehmen bei den Weibchen im Östrus noch weiter zu. Die Kastration der Weibchen am 4. Lebenstag führt zu einer Reduktion der funktionsspezifischen morphometrischen Parameter unter die Werte der Diöstrus-Tiere. Männliche Kastraten gleichen die Werte ihrer funktionsspezifischen Strukturen weitgehend denen der Weibchen im Diöstrus an. Nach Kastration am 4. Lebenstag zeigen weibliche Tiere somit etwas niedrigere morphonietrische Parameter in der äußeren Zona fasciculata als die männlichen Kastraten.
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We want to thank Prof. Dr. H. P. Rohr, Department of Pathology, University of Basel, for his aid with the statistical evaluation of our results and Mrs. B. Kubatsch and Mrs. S. Sigrist, Department of Pathology, University of the Saarland, for their excellent technical assistance. The electron microscope was donated by Stiftung Volkswagenwerk.
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Mäusle, E., Scherrer, H. Ultramorphometric studies regarding the effect of sex-hormones on the adrenal cortex of the rat. Cell Tissue Res. 149, 113–120 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00209054
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00209054