An automatic method for repetitive microsampling of blood from conscious animals was used to obtain detailed GH secretory profiles from normal female rats, which were compared with those in males and ovariectomized females. Female rats showed a highly variable GH secretory pattern, with sustained periods of low, almost continuous secretion, followed by very rapid bursts of high amplitude and short duration, occurring mostly at night. There was no clear relationship between the pattern of GH secretion and the phase of the oestrous cycle in rats continuously sampled over a 5-day period. In ovariectomized rats, the day:night difference was maintained, though the nocturnal GH surges were larger and of longer duration than in intact females. Male rats produced multicomponent GH bursts which continued unchanged throughout the day and night. This study shows for the first time that female rats switch to a rapid, highly pulsatile pattern of GH release at night, which can only be resolved by rapid blood sampling over extended periods in conscious undisturbed animals.
J. Endocr. (1987) 114, 399–407
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