Abstract
We tested the effects of chronic blockade of endogenous opiate transmission upon body weight and reproduction in female rats using the long-acting opiate antagonist naltrexone (ntx). Neither body weight nor vaginal smear pattern was affected by ntx treatment. In mating experiments the saline- and ntx-treated groups proved equally fertile with no differences in litter size. At all stages of the estrous cycle luteinizing hormone (LH) levels were the same in ntx- and saline-treated animals and the estradiol-induced LH surge was comparable in both groups. These data show that chronic blockade of endogenous opiate transmission does not interfere with fertility and LH secretion in female rats. Thus, endogenous opioids may only play a minor role in the reproduction of female rats.
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