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Progesterone levels in cesarean and normal delivered term placentas

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Abstract

Background

One of the most important hormones synthesized by the placenta during pregnancy is progesterone. The regulating mechanisms of progesterone synthesis and the mechanism responsible for the spontaneous onset of labor in women are still not fully understood. Progesterone is thought to have been involved in human parturition. The objective of this study was to compare the levels of progesterone in the human placentas, at the end of the gestation (37–41 weeks) in vaginal versus cesarean deliveries, and to evaluate the pattern of progesterone accumulation, instantly following its synthesis by the human placenta at the end of the pregnancy.

Methods

Progesterone levels in human placental tissue were determined by immunochemiluminescent analysis, following tissue homogenization. Progesterone secretion and accumulation pattern in the placental tissue was demonstrated using the ex vivo, closed, dual perfusion system of isolated human placental cotyledon.

Results

Immunochemiluminescent analysis of progesterone levels in human normal and cesarean-delivered placentas showed that placentas following normal vaginal delivery store higher concentrations of progesterone, and produce progesterone more intensively. Results obtained from 120-min perfusions (of vaginal and cesarean-delivered placentas) showed that progesterone tended to accumulate in the maternal rather than the fetal compartment.

Conclusions

These data indicate that progesterone levels continuously rise till the end of pregnancy, with no apparent drop in progesterone levels during the labor process. In addition, progesterone is released from the syncytiotrophoblast preferably into the maternal component of the placental tissue.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, P.O. Box 653, 84105, Beer-Sheva, Israel

    Valeria Feinshtein & Zvi Ben-Zvi

  2. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Soroka University Medical Center, P.O. Box 151, 84101, Beer-Sheva, Israel

    Eyal Sheiner, Boaz Sheizaf & Gershon Holcberg

  3. The Shraga Segal Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, Israel

    Alaa Amash

Authors
  1. Valeria Feinshtein
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  2. Zvi Ben-Zvi
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  3. Eyal Sheiner
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  4. Alaa Amash
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  5. Boaz Sheizaf
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  6. Gershon Holcberg
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Valeria Feinshtein or Gershon Holcberg.

Additional information

Z. Ben-Zvi, G. Holcberg are equally contributed to this study.

Authors’ contributions: VF carried out the tissue processing, the perfusion experiments and wrote the manuscript. AA participated and advised throughout the perfusion experiments. BS was the connecting person with the delivery room and supplied the placentas. ES provided consultation regarding the statistical analysis and revised the manuscript. ZBZ and GH managed the project and revised the manuscript.

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Feinshtein, V., Ben-Zvi, Z., Sheiner, E. et al. Progesterone levels in cesarean and normal delivered term placentas. Arch Gynecol Obstet 281, 387–392 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00404-009-1125-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00404-009-1125-x

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