title: Placental steroidogenesis in pregnant women with polycystic ovary syndrome.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the placental activity of steroid sulfatase (STS), 3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 (3β-HSD-1) and P450 aromatase (P450arom) in polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) compared to normal pregnant women.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty pregnant women with PCOS and 30 control pregnant women who delivered at term were studied. Samples of placental tissue and cord blood were obtained after delivery. A maternal blood sample was obtained during the 34th week of gestation. In placental tissue, the activities of STS, 3β-HSD-1 and P450arom were evaluated. In the blood samples, progesterone, DHEAS, DHEA, androstenedione, testosterone, estrone, estradiol and total estriol were determined.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In placental tissue from women with PCOS, higher 3β-HSD-1 and lower P450 aromatase activities were observed compared to control women. Moreover, women with PCOS showed higher androstenedione and testosterone concentrations compared to normal pregnant women (p=0.016 and p=0.025, respectively). In cord blood, female newborns of women with PCOS exhibited lower androstenedione and higher estriol concentrations compared to daughters of control women (p=0.038; p=0.031, respectively).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These data suggest that placental tissue from women with PCOS shows changes in the activities of two important enzymes for steroid synthesis, higher 3β-HSD-1 and lower P450, which could increase androgen production during pregnancy.
authors.affiliation: Endocrinology and Metabolism Laboratory, West Division, School of Medicine, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile. mmaliqueo@med.uchile.cl
authors.forename: Manuel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Maliqueo
authors.forename: Hernán E
authors.initials: HE
authors.lastname: Lara
authors.forename: Fernando
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Sánchez
authors.forename: Bárbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Echiburú
authors.forename: Nicolás
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Crisosto
authors.forename: Teresa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sir-Petermann
mesh_terms: D015067:17-Hydroxysteroid Dehydrogenases / Q000378:metabolism*; D000328:Adult; D000735:Androstenedione / Q000097:blood; D001141:Aromatase / Q000378:metabolism*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D010920:Placenta / Q000201:enzymology*; D011085:Polycystic Ovary Syndrome / Q000097:blood / Q000201:enzymology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011252:Pregnancy Complications, Neoplastic / Q000097:blood / Q000201:enzymology*; D043266:Steryl-Sulfatase / Q000378:metabolism*; D013739:Testosterone / Q000097:blood; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D013739:Testosterone; D000735:Androstenedione; D015067:17-Hydroxysteroid Dehydrogenases; C044256:3 (or 17)-beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase; D001141:Aromatase; D043266:Steryl-Sulfatase