Abstract
A specific double antibody radioimmunoassay for ovine and caprine growth hormone (GH) is described in which a comparison is made between the results obtained with purified preparations of ovine and caprine GH as the labelled antigens. Measurement of the circulating levels of GH in plasma taken from four lactating female, four castrated male and four virgin female goats showed no significant differences between the levels of GH in lactating and non-lactating animals. Marked variations in plasma GH were found between samples from different goats and between samples from the same goat. Possible reasons for these variations are discussed.
Key words
Growth Hormone - Radioimmunoassay - Ovine - Caprine - Basal Levels
1 Present address: Department of Dairy Husbandry, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand.
2 Present address: Department of Chemical Pathology, St. Bartholomew's Hospital Medical School, London, E.C.I.
