J. Kowal
Aug 1, 1969
Citations
0
Influential Citations
57
Citations
Journal
Endocrinology
Abstract
This report describes the use of aminoglutethimide (AG), an inhibitor of steroid synthesis, for the study of some effects of ACTH on the metabolism of functional monolayer cultures of murine adrenal cortex tumors. At concentrations in the medium of 10 μg/ml or higher, the drug specifically blocks steroid biosynthesis from cholesterol. At concentrations over 50 μg/ml it is also a competitive inhibitor of 11β-hydroxylation. Its action is immediate and reversible. Concentrations in excess of 100 μg/ml have no adverse effect on cell growth, RNA and protein synthesis, glycolysis or cholesterol synthesis. Four effects of ACTH which we have previously described were investigated: the steroidogenic response to ACTH, the augmentation of steroidogenesis by prolonged stimulation with ACTH, the increased synthesis of cholesterol from acetate, and the stimulation of glycolytic activity. At concentrations over 10 μg/ml, both control and stimulated steroidogenic activity is blocked. At lower concentrations, the ratio of...