Morphofunctional research on the interrenal gland of the frog Rana temporaria following arginine vasotocin administration

Studies have been made of the effect of injections of hypothalamic nonapeptide neurohormone, arginine vasotocin, on functional condition of the interrenal gland in mature frogs. In unoperated, sham-operated and in animals 10 days after hypophysectomy, single and especially three subsequent injections of arginine vasotocin (5 x 10(-9) M per 1 kg of the body weight) result in evident activation of glandular cells of the interrenal gland which is manifested in the increase of the volume of their nuclei and cytoplasmic area, as well as in the dilatation of the blood vessels. Activation of the interrenal gland in hypophysectomized frogs, which lack endogenous ACTH, indicate the direct para-adenohypophyseal influences of nonapeptide hypothalamic hormones on the activity of glandular cells in the peripheral endocrine glands, in particular, the interrenal gland of the grass frog.