BACKGROUND Soluble LH/hCG receptor (sLHCGR) released from placental explants and transfected cells can be detected in sera from pregnant women. To determine whether sLHCGR has diagnostic potential, quantitative ELISAs were developed and tested to examine the correlation between pregnancy outcome and levels of serum sLHCGR and hCG-sLHCGR complex. METHODS Anti-LHCGR poly- and monoclonal antibod...

STUDY QUESTION Are maternal first trimester levels of serum free-beta hCG associated with the development of hypospadias or undescended testis (UDT) in boys? SUMMARY ANSWER Overall, first trimester maternal levels of serum free-beta hCG are not associated with hypospadias or UDT. However, elevated levels were found in severe phenotypes (proximal hypospadias and bilateral UDT) suggesting an al...

The present investigation examined the effect of interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) on progesterone production by human luteal cells and the expression and localization of the IL-1 system in the human corpus luteum (CL). Luteal cells were isolated from corpora lutea collected throughout the luteal phase. After dispersion, luteal cells were treated with a panel of monoclonal antibodies directed to leu...

Objective: To predict pregnancy outcome by studying the relation between serum βHCG, progesterone and CA125 occurrence of miscarriage in first trimester, cases with history recurrent loss. Methods: Serum levels fifty pregnant women loss were compared to 50 no abortion, another group (No=50) who failed complete 1st trimester during study. Results: B-hCG showed a sensitivity 100%, specificity 50%...

A simple, safe and cost-effective treatment protocol in ovarian stimulation is of great importance in IVF practice, especially in the case of previous unsuccessful attempts. hCG has been used as a substitute of LH because of the degree of homology between the two hormones. The main aim of this prospective randomized study was to determine, for the first time, whether low dose hCG added to rFSH ...

BACKGROUND The predominant hCG variant in urine, hCG β core fragment (hCGβcf), has been demonstrated to cause false-negative results in qualitative point-of-care (POC) hCG devices. This is a major concern for healthcare professionals using POC pregnancy tests. We developed a screening method to evaluate qualitative POC hCG devices for their susceptibility to inhibition by hCGβcf. Using this met...

INTRODUCTION Prenatal screening and diagnosis is important for the detection of birth defects and genetic diseases. The nationwide proficiency testing (PT) of maternal serum prenatal screening in second trimester in China has been launched since 2003 and partly reflected the performance of screening laboratories. This study analysed the 2015 PT results to examine the performance of clinical lab...

Steroidogenic cells utilize lipoprotein-delivered cholesterol as a primary substrate for hormone synthesis. We studied low density lipoprotein (LDL) receptors in cultured human granulosa cells to determine what factors regulate receptor expression. Granulosa cells cultured under serum-free conditions were treated with human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) for 1.5 to 14 hr. The LDL receptor content...

BACKGROUND An initial study of trisomy 21 cases showed that prior to 10 weeks, maternal serum levels of intact hCG in the early first trimester are lower than normal. Here we further study the levels prior to and after 10 weeks of gestation to further establish whether or not the intact hCG is effective as a very early screening marker. METHODS Fifty-nine samples from pregnancies with trisomy...

OBJECTIVE It was the aim of this study to examine the possible effects of maternal and fetal characteristics on the fetal fraction in maternal plasma cell-free DNA (cfDNA) at 11-13 weeks' gestation. METHODS In a nested case-control study, cfDNA was extracted from maternal plasma obtained before chorionic villous sampling from 300 euploid, 50 trisomy 21 and 50 trisomy 18 pregnancies at 11-13 w...