Gonadectomy and Ovarian (Spleen) Grafts and Growth of Normal Male and Female Mice. ∗

Summary

This project has been supported in part by funds from the Division of Research Grants and Fellowships of the U. S. Public Health Service and by research grants from Indiana University Graduate School administered by Doctor R. T. Hill.

Castrated male mice grew at a slower rate than their normal controls, while the spayed females grew faster than their normal controls. The removal of the gonads reduced the sex difference in body weight. Those animals bearing grafts of ovaries also grew at a faster rate than their normal controls, the difference being significant at the 1% point. Although their growth curve approximated that of the spayed animals, at no time did it exceed it. The growth curve assumed by the weights of the grafted female mice did not parallel that of either the normal males or the castrated males. The differences in the body weight of the grafted females compared with the normal males and the castrated males were significant at the 1% level, the males being heavier in both cases.