Overlapping effects of different pituitary hormones on the oogenesis and spermatogenesis of Helix pomatia.

In agreement with earlier results, follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) enhances spermatogenesis in the snail. Thyreotropic hormone (TSH), which resembles FSH in its chemical structure, acts in the same way as does adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) to a lesser extent. As opposed to FSH, TSH and ACTH clearly increased the number of mature egg cells. The experiments support the view that the gonad cells of the snails respond to vertebrate hormones, and that the hormones have overlapping effects at this level.