Correlation between Immunoreactive Growth Hormone and Prolactin Activity in Human and Simian Pituitary Cell Cultures 1

Summary

Pituitary glands from human fetal and neonatal, and fetal monkey sources were established in tissue culture. Growth hormone (GH) was measured by immunoassay in the spent media from the tissue cultures and compared with prolactin activity of the media determined by bioassay. Both GH levels and prolactin activity declined over the first few weeks of culture, although in some flasks GH continued to be assayable in subculture for several months. These results do not support the concept that human GH and prolactin are two separate and distinctive hormones in fetal and neonatal primate pituitary glands.

We are indebted to Dr. William R. Lyons for carrying out the pigeon crop sac assays for prolactin and to Dr. Alfred Wilhelmi, Emory University; Dr. Maurice Raben, New England Medical Center; and the National Pituitary Agency for the human growth hormone used in these studies.