Epidermal growth factor and growth in vivo

Thesis/Dissertation · Wed Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1986

OSTI ID:5598283

Rhodes, J A

Epidermal growth factor (EGF) causes a dose-dependent thickening of the epidermis in suckling mice. The cellular mechanisms underlying this thickening were analyzed by measuring the effect of EGF on the cell-cycle. Neonatal mice were given daily injections of either 2ug EGF/g body weight/day or an equivalent volume of saline, and on the seventh day received a single injection of /sup 3/H-thymidine. At various times the mice were perfused with fixative; 1um sections of skin were stained with a modification of Harris' hematoxylin and were autoradiographed. The sections were analyzed using three methods based on the dependence on time after injection of /sup 3/H-thymidine of: frequency of labelled mitoses, labelling index, and reciprocal grains/nucleus. It was found that EGF caused a two-fold increase in the cell production rate. The effect of exogenous EGF on the morphology of gastric mucosa and incisors of suckling mice was also studied. The gastric mucosa appeared thicker in EGF-treated animals, but the effect was not statistically significant. In contrast to its effect on epidermis and gastric mucosa, EGF caused a significant, dose-dependent decrease in the size of the incisors. Because the mouse submandibular salivary gland is the major source of EGF the effect of sialoadenectomy on female reproductive functions was examined. Ablation of the submandibular gland had no effect on: length of estrus cycle, ability of the female to produce litters, length of the gestation period, litter size, and weight of the litter at birth. There was also no effect on survival of the offspring or on age at which the eyelids separated.

• Research Organization: Harvard Univ., Boston, MA (USA)
• OSTI ID: 5598283
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

550601* -- Medicine-- Unsealed Radionuclides in Diagnostics
551001 -- Physiological Systems-- Tracer Techniques
59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE
ANIMALS
AUTORADIOGRAPHY
AZINES
BIOCHEMISTRY
BODY
CELL CYCLE
CHEMISTRY
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
GLANDS
GROWTH
HETEROCYCLIC COMPOUNDS
IN VIVO
LABELLED COMPOUNDS
MAMMALS
MEMBRANES
MICE
MUCOUS MEMBRANES
NUCLEOSIDES
NUCLEOTIDES
ORAL CAVITY
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC NITROGEN COMPOUNDS
ORGANS
PHYSIOLOGY
PROTEINS
PYRIMIDINES
RIBOSIDES
RODENTS
SALIVARY GLANDS
SKIN
TEETH
THYMIDINE
TRITIUM COMPOUNDS
VERTEBRATES