IGF1 and 2 in two models of adrenal growth

Insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) 1 and 2 were measured in the adrenal glands of rats undergoing either compensatory growth following left unilateral adrenalectomy or adrenal regeneration following bilateral adrenal enucleation. In normal rat adrenal gland, the tissue concentration of IGF2 (7.45 ± 0.99 pg/ μg protein) was higher than IGF1 (1.26 ± 0.23 pg/ μg protein), both peptides being more abundant in the inner zones of the adrenal gland compared to the capsule-glomerulosa. During compensatory growth of the right adrenal gland, IGF1 and 2 increased significantly compared with control right adrenal glands at 24 h following left unilateral adrenalectomy ( P < 0.001). At 68 h, the increase remained significant for IGF1 ( P = 0.012). The two peptides were measured in the regenerating adrenal gland at 7,14 and 21 days following bilateral enucleation. Whilst there was a trend towards an increase in the IGF1 and 2 content of regenerating adrenal glands, the increase was significant only for IGF2 in the left adrenal gland at 21 days following enucleation. Plasma IGF1 and 2 did not increase compared to controls during the experiments (110.97 ± 1.95 and 46.33 ng/ml, respectively), suggesting that the changes in tissue IGF reflect increased local production during rapid growth of the adrenal gland.