title: Effects of corpus luteum removal on progesterone, estradiol-17 beta and LH in early pregnancy of the tammar wallaby, Macropus eugenii.
abstract: The quiescent corpus luteum of female tammars was reactivated by removal of the pouch young (RPY). The reactivated corpus luteum was ablated 3 days after RPY. Plasma progesterone and oestradiol concentrations were measured by radioimmunoassay in these and in sham-operated controls. Excision of the CL abolished the rise in progesterone seen at Day 5-6 in the sham-operated animals (130.7 +/- 56.6 vs 452.4 +/- 176.0 pg/ml, mean +/- s.d.). By contrast, oestradiol-17 beta values increased within 6-16 h of CL excision to 16.3 +/- 6.9 pg/ml and remained high for 1-3 days while in the sham-operated animals there were less sustained and more variable peaks of 10-20 pg/ml between Days 3 and 5 (mean 12.0 +/- 3.6 pg/ml at Day 4-5). We conclude that the early transient increase in peripheral plasma of progesterone is of luteal origin but the source of the oestradiol remains unknown.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: T P
authors.initials: TP
authors.lastname: Fletcher
authors.forename: M B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Renfree
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003338:Corpus Luteum / Q000502:physiology*; D004958:Estradiol / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones / Q000097:blood*; D007986:Luteinizing Hormone / Q000097:blood*; D007614:Macropodidae / Q000097:blood*; D008394:Marsupialia / Q000097:blood*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011270:Pregnancy, Animal / Q000097:blood*; D011374:Progesterone / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones; D011374:Progesterone; D004958:Estradiol; D007986:Luteinizing Hormone