Studies on the regulation of growth hormone release from the proximal pars distalis of male tilapia, Oreochromis mossambicus, in vitro

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The in vitro effects of several factors, including cortisol, somatostatin (SRIF), and medium osmotic pressure, on growth hormone (GH) release from the tilapia pituitary were examined in relation to fish size. Spontaneous GH release from the proximal pars distalis (PPD) of ∼60-g fish was significantly less than that from tissue of fish weighing either ∼120 or ∼280 g when incubated in 340mØsmolal medium. While GH content of the PPD cultures (tissue + medium measured by densitometry) increased consistently with fish size, GH concentration (per microgram of tissue protein) was variable, being highest in 120-g fish and lowest in 280-g fish. Moreover, GH concentration was not related to GH release. Fish size also appeared to be important in the responsiveness of GH cells to stimulation by cortisol (Nishioka et al., 1985) and by increased osmotic pressure. In cultures of PPD from ∼60-g fish, in which spontaneous release was relatively low, cortisol and increased medium osmotic pressure significantly enhanced release. Cortisol and hyperosmotic medium were without significant effect, however, on GH release from PPD of ∼120-g fish, which showed high spontaneous release. In contrast, SRIF, a potent inhibitor of GH secretion, was effective in lowering GH release regardless of fish size. Nevertheless, SRIF was apparently more effective in inhibiting GH release from tissue of 60-g fish than from tissue of 120-g fish. Our data suggest that GH secretion may be augmented when smaller tilapia (∼60 g) are transferred to seawater, a situation in which blood cortisol and osmotic pressure would presumably be elevated.