Antibodies against testosterone: valuable tools for the investigation of the hypothalamo-pituitary-gonadal system in the rabbit fetus.

16 female rabbits were actively immunized against testosterone (T). 9 of them conceived and gave birth to 89 neonates. In all neonatal plasma samples antibodies against T were detected. In the males the plasma T levels were elevated 1,000-fold. The testes of these animals were examined by means of morphometrical and biochemical methods. The results indicate increased stimulation of Leydig cells in fetuses exposed to antibodies against T, and suggest that even in the fetus a negative feedback is acting between testes and hypothalamo-pituitary system, which is interrupted by the antibodies which bind and inactivate T.