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THE EFFECT OF TRANSECTION OF THE PITUITARY STALK ON THE CYTOLOGY OF THE PITUITARY GLAND OF THE RAT
Author(s) -
Daniel P. M.,
Duchen L. W.,
Prichard Marjorie M. L.
Publication year - 1964
Publication title -
quarterly journal of experimental physiology and cognate medical sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.925
H-Index - 101
eISSN - 1469-445X
pISSN - 0033-5541
DOI - 10.1113/expphysiol.1964.sp001728
Subject(s) - pituitary stalk , thyrotropic cell , anterior pituitary , chromophobe cell , pituitary gland , endocrinology , medicine , gonadotropic cell , biology , somatotropic cell , prolactin , endocrine gland , thyroid , hypothalamus , stalk , hormone , immunohistochemistry , clear cell , horticulture
This paper reports the changes in the cytological structure of the surviving regions of the pituitary gland of the rat after transection of the pituitary stalk, an operation which causes extensive infarction of the anterior lobe of the gland. A barrier placed between the cut ends of the stalk had prevented restoration of vascular and neural connections between the hypothalamus and pituitary. Differential staining methods were used to distinguish the various types of cell in the anterior lobe (pars distalis) by their secretory granules. Within the first 10 days after stalk section there was a marked reduction in the number of cells with differentiated secretory granules. The gonadotrophs lost their granules more rapidly than did the other types of cell and in rats surviving longer than 8 weeks no gonadotrophs could be identified. Thyrotrophs showed a marked loss of secretory granules, but some cells which were identified as modified thyrotrophs were present many months after stalk section. Small numbers of sparsely granulated acidophils were also present at this late stage. These were believed to be prolactin‐secreting cells. The reduction in the numbers of acidophils containing granules, together with the marked retardation of growth, suggested that there had been degranulation and loss of function of those acidophils which produce growth hormone. The changes in these various anterior pituitary cell types were reflected in the cytology of the gonads and the thyroid and also in the growth of the rats. There was marked adrenal atrophy after stalk section but this investigation did not throw light on which type of pituitary cell is related to the control of adrenocortical activity. In pars intermedia mitotic activity was seen during the first week after operation but was not present in the long‐surviving animals, in which this lobe looked normal. The neural lobe became greatly shrunken, and no neurosecretory material was seen in it in the long‐surviving rats.