Differential effects of morphine and naltrexone on the in vitro LH secretion from male and female carp pituitary gland

The in vitro effects of morphine (10 − 10 , 10 − 8 , 10 − 6 or 10 − 5 M) or/and naltrexone (10 − 6 or 10 − 8 M) on LH release from male and female carp ( Cyprinus carpio L.) dispersed pituitary cells (obtained from fish at the time of late gonad recrudescence) were investigated. Morphine alone at the lowest tested concentration (10 − 10 M) increased LH secretion from the cells of males. On the contrary, in female cell incubations the highest concentrations of morphine (10 − 6 or 10 − 5 M) significantly lowered LH levels. Naltrexone alone (at both tested concentrations) had no influence on LH secretion, neither in males nor in females. However in the incubations of female cells it antagonised the influence of morphine at 10 − 10 or 10 − 8 M. In male cell incubations naltrexone abolished the stimulatory action of morphine at 10 − 10 M. The results suggest that in the in vitro culture of carp pituitary cells LH secretion is modulated by the opioids which affect the release of this gonadotropin through the typical opioid receptors and that the μ type of these receptors is involved in this process. The effects of opioid agonist and antagonist depend on the stage of gonadal maturity and the sex of fish i.e. the actual level of sex steroids.