Oral Effectiveness of Testosterone Propionate Plus Bile Acid.

Abstract

Bile acids facilitate the absorption of cholesterol, certain of the fat soluble vitamins, and certain drugs from the intestinal tract. The similarity in chemical structure between male sex hormones and some of these substances suggests that the administration of bile acids by mouth may enhance the oral activity of the male sex hormone. Such a procedure has been used in the human and in the monkey. The studies in the human were such that evaluation of the response to therapy was based largely on subjective factors. The evidence in the monkey was based on the fact that one monkey failed to show postcastration bleeding when treated with testosterone propionate and bile acids by mouth. The purpose of the present study, therefore, was to investigate this question by using a well-established assay method. Testosterone propionate was the hormone used in the previously quoted reports, and also in this study. This substance is not particularly active by mouth when compared with methyl testosterone, however, it does possess slight oral potency. Desoxycholic acid was the bile acid chosen for this study. This substance has been shown to be the most effective in promoting intestinal absorption of the above mentioned compounds., , Male albino rats of 125-150 g in weight were castrated, and oral administration of the various substances was begun on the day after castration. The animals were divided into 4 groups: (1) those receiving 0.1 mg of testosterone propionate per day, (2) those receiving 0.1 mg of testosterone propionate plus 0.5 mg of desoxycholic acid per day, (3) those receiving 1.0 mg of testosterone propionate per day, and (4) those receiving 1.0 mg of testosterone propionate plus 0.5 mg of desoxycholic acid per day.