I. Introduction W ITH advancing pregnancy in humans and nonhuman primates, the placenta
and fetal adrenal produce extremely large amounts of the steroid hormones estrogen …

I. Physiological Significance of the Fetal Adrenal IN MOST mammalian species, products of
the fetal adrenal gland appear to play an important role in regulating maturation of various …

Intrauterine growth and development follow an orderly sequence of critical phases that
influence the several organ systems of the fetus differently at various times. Thus, placental …

abstract Estrogens produced by the placenta play a pivotal role in the endocrine control of
pregnancy and induce many of the key changes involved in parturition. The placentae of …

Human pregnancy is associated with profound changes in the mother's steroid hormone
milieu because of steroids produced by the corpus luteum of pregnancy and by the …

The principal modulators of the hypothalamic‐pituitary‐adrenal (HPA) axis are corticotropin‐
releasing hormone (CRH) and arginine‐vasopressin (AVP). Corticotropin‐releasing …

Plasma corticosterone levels were measured throughout pregnancy and on the first day post
partum in the mouse. During the first half of pregnancy plasma corticosterone levels rose …

Birth in many animal species and in humans is associated with activation of hypothalamic-
pituitary-adrenal function in the fetus and the increased influence of glucocorticoids on …

A general characteristic of fetal endocrine maturation across different species is the
enhanced activity of the fetal hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis during late …

We have examined factors concerned with the maintenance of uterine quiescence during
pregnancy and the onset of uterine activity at term in an animal model, the sheep, and in …