Perinatal age and sex variations of the triiodothyronine nuclear receptors in the chick pectoralis major muscle.

The ontogenesis of the nuclear triiodothyronine receptors was determined in the pectoralis muscle of male and female chicken at 18 days in ovo and 0, 3, 6, 14 and 35 days ex ovo. Our results show the presence of putative T3 nuclear receptors with equilibrium dissociation constant values (Kd approximately 5.50 X 10(-10) M) in good agreement with these reported in other tissues. The T3 receptor numbers decrease from 18 days incubation to 6-day-old animals, then increase until 35 days of age. Compared to the already reported levels of thyroid hormone in plasma and tissues, the results seem to correspond to a down-regulation of the muscle T3 receptors. The nuclear binding capacity of T3 was higher in females than in males, which could be related to the known effects of various sex steroid hormones on the T4 to T3 tissue conversion.