Sexual Maturation in the Female Ferret: Circumventing the Gonadostat*

The purpose of this study was to examine the role of circulating 17β-estradiol in the regulation of pituitary gonadotropin secretion and, hence, ovarian maturation in immature female ferrets. The hypersensitive negative feedback relationship between the ovaries and the hypothalamo-pituitary axis in developing ferrets was disrupted by infusion of a specific antiserum to 17β-estradiol. The effect of this treatment on gonadotropin secretion and ovarian morphology was contrasted with that observed in intact age-matched control females treated with a nonimmune γglobulin preparation. Infusion of the antibody into intact immature ferrets caused, within 48 h, an increase in pulsatile secretion of LH to 0.67 ± 0.06 pulses/h over that observed in intact females treated with control γglobulin (0.13 ± 0.06 pulses/h). This increase in pulse frequency was similar to that observed 48 h after ovariectomy of young animals (0.70 ± 0.12 pulses/h). Furthermore, this level of gonadotropin secretion in antibody-treated animals...