THE GONADOTROPIC HORMONES 



Teilum, 1936; and Tramontana, 1936). There was observed 

 consistently a hypercholesterolemia following the injection 

 of prolan. Cioglia concluded that hypercholesterolemia of 

 early pregnancy is due to prolan, whereas the reduced or ab- 

 normally low concentration of the lipoid in later pregnancy 

 depends upon the effect of an oestrogen. 



Two reports deal with the action of prolan on the con- 

 centration of inorganic substances in the blood. According 

 to Klodt (1937), the subcutaneous administration of prolan 

 to rabbits (500 rat-units daily for 6 days) brings about a 

 transient rise in the concentration of Na associated with a 

 fall of K and inorganic P. Less water and Na are excreted 

 by the kidneys. In the other report Dell'Acqua (1935) con- 

 firmed Cannavo's statement that prolan causes a rise in the 

 concentration of Mg in the blood. The average increase was 

 38 per cent (20-78 per cent; 6 experiments in 2 cats). 



Marchesi (1935) reported that female rats on a diet free 

 from vitamin E, and otherwise sterile, could become preg- 

 nant (by normal males) following the administration of pro- 

 lan. The young died shortly after birth, because of the ab- 

 sence of lactation. A glycerol extract of the placenta was 

 even more effective than prolan. Van Os (1936) studied the 

 effect of prolan on the degenerated testis of the rat on a 

 vitamin-A-free diet. The interstitial cells were stimulated, 

 but there was not resumption of spermatogenesis. 



The growth of neopIas?ns hi relation to pro/a?7. — Prolan ap- 

 pears not to have important inhibitory effects on the growth 

 of neoplasms. Magath and Smoilowskaia (1935) concluded 

 that the injection of 50-100 rat-units daily for as long as a 

 month might cause a maximum inhibition of 50 per cent in 

 the growth of a neoplasm. These investigators used mice 

 and rats (transplanted mammary adenocarcinoma and Jen- 

 sen sarcoma) . Other reports of Bischoff" and Maxwell, Druck- 

 rey, Engel, and Katz are discussed in chapters ii and iii. 



Miscellaneous observations. — Prolan does not affect the 

 coagulation-time of the blood in man (125-250 rat-units 



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