Demonstration of alpha-glycerophosphate dehydrogenase in the human pituitary gland with special reference to the cells of the pars tuberalis.

Abstract

The demonstration of α-glycerophosphate dehydrogenase (α-GPD) in epithelial cells of the pars tuberalis in man is reported. This method provides a clear means of staining these usually poorly displayed cells. The proximal, or cranial, terminus of these cells appears to be at the median eminence. Caudally, within the pituitary gland proper, the cells seem to blend with the basophilic (periodic acid-Schiff positive) cells of the pars distalis, many of which are also α-GPD positive. Staining is limited to the cytoplasm of the positive cells; there is no nuclear staining and there is no staining of connective tissue, colloid and other epithelial cells. The widespread distribution of the α-GPD positive cells in the human pituitary weakens our earlier hypothesis, based on results in the rat, that this enzyme might be a histochemical hallmark of TSH production or release. Its limitation to periodic acid-Schiff positive cells suggests its association with the cellular sites of TSH, FSH, LH or ACTH synthesis. (End...