Abstract

The zona glomerulosa of the adrenal gland of the hypophysectomized rat maintains its morphological integrity and a readily demonstrable lipid content, while the zonae fasciculata and reticularis atrophy (Deane and Greep, 1946; Greep and Deane, 1949). These observations have suggested that the zona glomerulosa of the rat adrenal cortex is independent of the pituitary gland (Greep and Deane, 1949; Yoffey and Baxter, 1949). The results of other investigators have suggested, however, that the zone may not be entirely autonomous. In mice (Jones, 1949) and in rats (Cater and Stack-Dunne, 1953; Wexler et al., 1955) marked activity in the zona glomerulosa has been observed following the administration of corticotropic fractions. Morphological alterations of the zone in various human disease states have been reported by Stephens (1940), Conn (1949) and O]Donnell et al. (1951), while Landing and Feriozi (1954) note that under certain conditions, it may be responsive to ACTH.

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