Effect of hormones on the glycosaminoglycan content of canine renal arteries.

The effect of hypophysectomy and replacement therapy with individual hormones such as somatotropin, cortisone, estradiol, progesterone and testosterone on the glycosaminoglycan (GAG) composition of renal arteries was studied in young beagles. The renals from normal animals showed a uniformly low total GAG content of about two thirds of the value found for aorta and coronary arteries. Neither hypophysectomy nor hormone replacement altered the GAG content, with the exception of estradiol which showed a marked effect by raising the hyaluronic acid content to nearly double the normal value. These results by being at variance with those obtained for aorta and coronary arteries provide further evidence of the differential hormone sensitivity that exists in the various segments of the canine arterial tree with respect to GAG metabolism.