title: Relaxin levels in amniotic fluid, extraembryonic coelomic fluid and maternal serum in early human pregnancy.
abstract: Separately identified samples of amniotic fluid and extraembryonic coelomic fluid together with maternal serum were collected from 22 women between 8 and 11 weeks of pregnancy and analysed for relaxin by immunoassay. Relaxin levels in maternal serum (median 1085 pg/ml; range 390-1259 pg/ml) were substantially higher than those in extraembryonic coelomic fluid (median 57.5 pg/ml; range 17-145 pg/ml; P < 0.0001; Mann-Whitney U-test). In turn, the levels of relaxin in coelomic fluid were higher than those in amniotic fluid (median 10 pg/ml; range 10-37 pg/ml; P < 0.0001; Mann-Whitney U-test). A linear correlation was found between relaxin levels in maternal serum and coelomic fluid (r = 0.68; P = 0.001) but there was no relation between levels in the other fluid compartments.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics, St Bartholomew's Hospital, West Smithfield, London, UK.
authors.forename: N C
authors.initials: NC
authors.lastname: Wathen
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Perry
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gunn
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Campbell
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Chard
mesh_terms: D000653:Amniotic Fluid / Q000737:chemistry*; D001826:Body Fluids / Q000737:chemistry*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D011247:Pregnancy / Q000097:blood* / Q000378:metabolism*; D011261:Pregnancy Trimester, First; D012065:Relaxin / Q000032:analysis* / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D012065:Relaxin