[Thyroid stimulating effect of exogenous vasopressin and oxytocin in hypophysectomized rats during immobilization stress].

Male Wistar rats were hypophysectomized 1 week before restraint stress. The hypophysectomy caused a decrease of blood vasopressin (30%, P less than 0.05) and a diminution of the thyroid activity (the thyrocyte height lowered to 43%, P less than 0.01). The TSH concentration was about normal and remained constant during the experiment. After 20 min of the restraint stress, the vasopressin concentration reached 178% (P less than 0.01), but the thyroid did not response in rats with the intact hypophysis. In the hypophysectomized rats, the restraint stress caused neither essential changes of the blood vasopressin nor the thyroid function as compared with the hypophysectomized control. An injection of vasopressin (5.0 ng/100 g) or oxytocin (15.0 ng/100 g) resulted in a slight activation of the thyroid in the hypophysectomized rats but significantly stimulated in when combined with the restraint stress; vasopressin injection led to an increase of the thyrocyte height to 152% (P less than 0.01), oxytocin--to 126% (P less than 0.05). Thus, in hypophysectomized rats, vasopressin and oxytocin can influence the thyroid directly. Stressful conditions facilitate the thyroid stimulating effect of these nonapeptide neurohormones.