Stimulatory effect of pigeon milk growth factor on protein and nucleic acid synthesis in neonate mice.
Effect of subcutaneously administered pigeon milk-derived growth factor (PMGF) on protein and nucleic acid content of various body organs was studied in neonate mice. Although the body and organ weights of PMGF-treated mice did not differ from those of controls, the weight of testes was significantly higher in the former than the latter. The treated animals had significantly greater content of protein (in liver and skin), DNA (in liver, lung, stomach, duodenum, ileum and rectum) and RNA (in liver, stomach, ileum and skin). The protein/DNA ratio was lower in many organs of PMGF-treated mice. These results indicate that the biological properties of PMGF bear semblance to those of epidermal growth factor isolated from mouse salivary gland and human milk.