Effect of Neonatal Gonadectomy on Lymphocytes Population and Blast Formation in Aged Rats

In male rats gonadectomized at birth, the blast formation reaction of lymphocytes was significantly lower at 114 weeks of age, than that of non-gonadectomized controls, whereas the lymphocyte subpopulation was similar. The thymus of neonatally castrated rats of age 114 weeks was histologically normal, decreasing in weight to 68% of that of non-castrated rats.