
resistance to human growth hormone in pituitary dwarfism:
clinical and immunologic studies
thirteen pituitary dwarfs have
been treated with human growth hormone
(hgh), and growth acceleration with doses of
5-7 mg/week has been observed in all but one
patient.  on therapy, this 7 1/2-year-old girl grew
at a rate of 1.05 cm/month for 7 months.
thereafter, despite larger doses of growth
hormone (15 mg/week), growth rate fell to
0.27 cm/month.  this rate of growth persisted
after stopping hgh.  on retreatment on 2
occasions, acceleration of growth did not
occur.  antibodies to hgh, absent in her
serum before treatment, were repeatedly
demonstrated in her serum in high concentra-
tion (hgh binding capacity up to 100 mg/1)
during treatment.  comparable titers of anti-
body have not been found in any of the 12
other patients receiving long-term hgh treat-
ment.  the specificity of the human anti-hgh
serum differed from rabbit anti-hgh serum.
whereas both monkey growth hormone
(mgh) and hgh were effective inhibitors of
the binding of hgh-131i by rabbit antiserum,
only hgh was an effective inhibitor with
human antiserum.  in like manner, a crude
placental extract which was an effective in-
hibitor for rabbit antiserum was ineffective
with human anti-hgh serum.
