The role of endogenous opioids in the control of gonadotropin secretion in uremic male rats was investigated using the narcotic antagonist, naloxone. In order to eliminate the effect of weight loss due to uremia-induced anorexia as a cause of previously described altered gonadotropin secretion in uremia, we also studied a group of normal pair-fed control animals who exhibited a weight loss comparable to that of the uremic animals. Naloxone administration had no effect on the basal or LRH-stimulated peak concentrations of LH and FSH in the normal or the uremic rats. Basal and LRH-stimulated gonadotropin responses in the pair-fed rats were comparable to those seen in the normal rats. Similarly, opoid blockade produced no change in the basal or LRH-stimulated gonadotropin responses in the pair-fed animals. Testosterone concentrations were significantly lower in the uremic and pair-fed animals compared to the normal rats. The data suggest that experimental renal failure is not associated with altered opioidergic tone, as it relates to gonadotropin secretion, or to diminished sensitivity of the gonadotroph to LRH stimulation. The decreased testosterone concentration seen in the uremic and pair-fed rats may reflect abnormalities in gonadal hormone secretion due to primary pathology occurring at the level of the gonad. These abnormalities may be reflected as diminished Leydig cell sensitivity to LH. The inappropriately low concentrations of LH in the presence of low testosterone together with normal gonadotropin response to exogenous LRH also suggest an abnormal secretion of endogenous LRH. It is not clear whether this presumed abnormality in LRH secretion is a primary event or is related to decreased testosterone production by the testes in the uremic and pair-fed rats.

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