Non-steroidal antifertility agents affecting brain mechanisms.

Many non-steroidal agents prevent ovulation by acting on the nervous structures that control the secretion of gonadotrophins. Information on the neuroendocrine factors involved in the process of ovulation in mammals is presented in this paper and is then used as the background for explaining the mode of action of drugs which inhibit ovulation through an effect on the central nervous system. Such drugs are found among the following classes of compounds: CNS depressants, tranquillizers, cholinergic blocking agents, and adrenergic blocking agents. Although it is unlikely that any of the specific agents discussed in this paper will have clinical application, because of associated behavioural effects, the knowledge gained by studying the mode of action of these compounds indicates pathways to follow in the search for new anti-ovulatory drugs.