BACKGROUND In boys with Prader-Labhart-Willi syndrome (PWS), hypogonadism causes pubertal arrest and reduces pubertal muscle growth. Formerly, it was assumed that therapy with gonadal hormones accentuates behaviour abnormalities in PWS. Our aim was to assess the clinical effects of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) therapy on pubertal development, muscle mass and behaviour in adolescents with ...

Basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) proteins regulate transcription from the E box sequence (5'-CANNTG-3') located in the regulatory region of most gene promoters. The rat enhancer of split- and hairy-related protein 2 (SHARP-2) is a member of the bHLH protein family. To analyze the possible role of SHARP-2 in the rat ovary, the regulation of the expression of the SHARP-2 gene was examined, and the S...

Synthesis of human placental lactogen (hPL) and of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) by membrane-bound and free polyribosomes from early and from full term human placentas was investigated by in vitro release of the nascent hormone peptides, followed by immunoprecipitation and electrophoresis in sodium dodecyl sulfate gels, and by specific binding of 125I-labeled hPL antibody to nascent peptid...

Concentrations of human choriogonadotropin (hCG) and its free beta subunit (beta hCG) were measured in serum by highly sensitive and specific time-resolved immunofluorometric assays (IFMAS). The results were confirmed by completely separating beta hCG and hCG by a novel method based on hydrophobic-interaction chromatography. We used three monoclonal antibodies in two different combinations. In ...

The synthesis of human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) and its subunits was studied in simian virus 40 (SV40) tsA mutant-transformed human first-trimester and term placental cells at 33 degrees (the temperature at which the cells have the transformed phenotype) and at 40 degrees (the temperature at which the tsA transformants regain their nontransformed phenotype). 8-Bromo cyclic adenosine 3':5'-m...

Hyperglycosylated hCG (hCG-H) is a glycosylation variant of the hormone hCG. Here we review all that is known about this independently functioning molecule. As discussed, it is a very different molecule to the hormone hCG. First, hCG-H is produced by cytotrophoblast cells while regular hCG is made in syncytiotrophoblast cell. Second, it is an autocrine acting directly on the cells which produce...

In biological fluids, hCG and its free alpha- (hCG alpha) and beta-subunits (hCG beta), occur in multiple forms. These various forms differ at the molecular level primarily in glycosylation, but also differ in protein backbone modifications corresponding to the urinary low molecular weight fragment of the hCG beta-subunit (beta-core fragment). This microheterogeneous nature can be demonstrated ...

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to investigate the role of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) in embryo invasion at the implantation site and to estimate the effect on PBMC function of human chorionic gonadotrophin (HCG) that is secreted from the human embryo. METHODS AND RESULTS The effect of PBMC on the invasiveness of murine embryos was examined using an invasion assay. PBMC ob...

The present study examined whether the rates of oocyte maturation, fertilization and development, as well as pregnancy rate could be improved by human chorionic gonadotrophin (HCG) priming 36 h before immature oocyte retrieval in patients with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). Immature oocyte retrieval was performed on day 10-14 of the cycles and patients were randomly allocated either to be ...

The isolated cell membranes from bovine corpora lutea bound lz51-human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) with high affinity and specificity. The specific binding was saturable with respect to the amounts of membrane protein and 12jIHCG added. Approximately 8.4 x 10-l” M 124-HCG saturated all the receptor sites in 1.0 mg of membrane protein. The specific binding of 12sI-HCG was strong and not readily...