[Mechanism of action of tetracycline on the functional state of the adrenal cortex].

The mechanism of stimulation of the adrenal cortex function by tetracycline was studied on albino rats. It was shown that tetracycline administered orally in a dose of 200 mg/kg regularly induced an increase in the corticosterone levels in the peripheral blood of the animals by the 15th day of the antibiotic use. It was shown on the animals with an experimentally suppressed function of the hypophysis by prolonged administration of hydrocortisone acetate that tetracycline primarily stimulated the hypophysis function resulting in production and excretion of increased amounts of the adrenocorticotropic hormone into the blood. The hormone increased the production of corticosterone in the adrenal glands which resulted in its higher levels in the peripheral blood.