Dissociation of prolactin-releasing activity from thyrotropin-releasing hormone in porcine stalk median eminence.

The prolactin (PRL)-releasing activity of porcine stalk median eminence (pSME) was characterized by an in vivo bioassay and concomitant radioi-munoassay of plasma PRL and thyrotropin (TSH) levels. Methanol extracts of pSME stimulated PRL release in 3-day estrogen-primed rats when administered by the intracarotid route in doses ranging from 0.1 to 2.0 pSME equivalents. Synthetic thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) stimulated the release of PRL and TSH in the dose range of 10 to 300 ng. PRL release was greater in response to a maximally effective dose of pSME than the release elicited by a maximal dose of TRH, and pSME administered together with a greater than mazimally effective dose of TRH caused additional PRL but not TSH secretion. Lysine vasopressin and prostaglandin E1 and E2 stimulated PRL release only at doses several orders of magnitude greater than the dose present in pSME. Somatostatin inhibited the release of TSH but not that of PRL whether the stimulus employed was pSME or TRH. The effective inhibitory dose of somatostatin was also significantly greater than the reported hypothalamic content. When pSME was subjected to incubation with plasma, a treatment reported to inactivate TRH, TSH-releasing activity was destroyed to a greater extent than was PRL-releasing activity. When pSME was adsorbed onto charcoal, the supernatant solution was devoid of TRH, as determined by complete removal of a [3H]TRH marker, yet substantial PRL-releasing activity was retained. TSH-releasing activity eluted from the charcoal with methanol was considerably greater than that expected on the basis of the recovery of [3H]TRH, suggesting the presence in the crude extract of a TSH-release inhibitor or of a TSH-releasing factor other than TRH. Based on the above evidence, we conclude that crude pSME contains PRL-releasing substance(s) distinct from the tripeptide TRH.