OVULATION BLOCK PRODUCED BY AN INHIBITOR OF LUTEOTROPHIN, ERGOCORNINE

ABSTRACT Ergocornine methanesulphonate is a known inhibitor of pituitary luteotrophic activity in the rat; by this means its administration interrupts pregnancy and pseudopregnancy. In this study it has been shown to block ovulation. The time during which ovulation can be blocked is divisible into two periods, one of which corresponds to the critical period for ovulation block by neurodepressive drugs. The working hypothesis of this study, that ergocornine competes with progesterone for a CNS-receptor, is not confirmed.