Effects of KClO4 in propylthiouracil-hypothyroid rats

In this study we investigated further the antigoitrogenic effect of ClO4 in rats on a low iodine diet (LID) and 6-propyl-2-thiouracil (PTU). The thyroid weight of rats on the mixed goitrogen was initially similar to that of animals on PTU, decreasing to values obtained in rats treated with ClO4 alone by 10 days. Despite the differences in thyroid weight, rats treated during an identical period with PTU or mixed goitrogen develop hypothyroidism to a comparable degree as far as can be assessed by the thyroidal 127I content, plasma T4, T3 and TSH concentrations, and pituitary TSH content. Moreover, it was observed that there were differences in plasma insulin and glucose levels in these hypothyroid animals. The plasma insulin and glucose levels of rats on PTU are comparable to those found in control rats. In rats on mixed goitrogen, both plasma insulin and glucose levels are initially maintained within the normal ranges, and then decline over the subsequent days of treatment. Within the treatment period studied here, plasma insulin and glucose levels were higher for rats on PTU than for animals on ClO4, PTU + ClO4, or thyroidectomized (Th) animals. We have obtained further evidence of the hypothyroid state of rats on these goitrogen regimens based on measurements of pituitary and plasma GH levels and liver mitochondrial alpha-glycerophosphate dehydrogenase (alpha-GPD). The PTU-treatment decreased the liver alpha-GPD activity to a comparable degree to that of mixed goitrogen. Moreover, both PTU + ClO4 and PTU-treatment resulted in a state of hypothyroidism intense enough to induce effects on growth, and plasma and pituitary GH levels comparable to that of Th animals. However, the values for rats on mixed goitrogen appear to be below the PTU data. The present findings appear to be consistent with the view that TSH is not the unique factor determining the size of the resulting goitre. The results are discussed in relation to the hypothesis that: 1) the antigoitrogenic effect of ClO4 could be associated with changes in the ability of the thyroid tissue to bind TSH, or with a step beyond TSH binding, and 2) the different endocrine and metabolic states of rats on PTU or PTU + ClO4, shown by their different plasma insulin, GH and glucose levels, may play an important role in determining the thyroid weight response to TSH.