Prolactin-Stimulating Effect on ³H-Thymidine Incorporation in 3-Methylcholanthrene- Induced Cervical Carcinomas in Normal and Estrogenized Mice

Summary

Neonatal female NMRI mice were given injections of 5μ estradiol in olive oil or olive oil onlyfor the first 5 days after birth. When the animals were 6–9 weeksold, a thread impregnated with 3-methylcholanthrene was inserted into the uterine cervix. When palpable cervical tumors were identified, the animals were killed and the tumors used for organ culture experiments. The incubation medium contained 5μ ovine prelactln/m! or a corresponding volume of Parker 199 medium (controls). Prolactin significantly stimulated ³H-thymidine (³H_TDR) incorporation in tumors from the animals given olive oil neonatally. There was a probable effect in tumors from estrogenized animals (given estradiol neonatally). Prolactin stimulated the ³H-TDR incorporation in monolayer cultures from normal neonatal cervical epithelium.