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Studies on Human Sexual Development. V. Concentrations of Testosterone, 17-Hydroxyprogesterone and Progesterone in Human Amniotic Fluid Throughout Gestation

Departments of Pediatrics, Physiology and Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Manitoba, and the Endocrine-Metabolism Laboratory, Health Sciences Centre, Winnipeg Manitoba, Canada

Concentrations of unconjugated testosterone, 17-hydroxyprogesterone (170HP) and progesterone were measured by radioimmunoassay in amniotic fluid (AF) specimens from normal pregnancies of 9–40 weeks gestation. In two-thirds of samples from pregnancies with male fetuses, AF testosterone exceeded the upper limit found in female samples, with minimal overlap in the 12–18 week period of gestation. Although AF testosterone levels associated with male and female fetuses were both significantly lower toward term, the sexdifference persisted. Between 9–19 weeks gestation, fetal sex was also found to influence AF 170HP, a steroid thought to be predominantly of placental and fetal adrenal origin; in this case, female levels exceeded male. Awareness of the influence of sex and gestation upon AF concentrations of these steroids is an important prerequisite for their application to the prenatal diagnosis of endocrine disease (e.g., congenital adrenal hyperplasia). There was no sex difference in AF progesterone concentrations at 12–18 weeks gestation. The median progesterone concentration at 34–40 weeks was higher with female fetuses, but this difference may be related to a difference in gestational age between AF samples obtained from male and female fetuses.

Supported by grants from the Medical Research Council of Canada, The Children's Hospital of Winnipeg Research Foundation, the Manitoba Medical Services Foundation, and the Mrs. James A. Richardson Foundation. Dr. Wame is an Overseas Travelling Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians and recipient of a Searle Travel Grant in Endocrinology. Dr. Winter is a Queen Elizabeth II Scientist.

Received September 29, 1976.

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