Concentration of prostaglandin F2alpha and steroids in the human corpus luteum.

The concentration of prostaglandin F2alpha (PGF2alpha), progesterone, pregnenolone, oestradiol-17beta, oestrone, androstenedione and testosterone was measured in corpora lutea obtained from 40 women at various stages of the menstrual cycle. The concentration of PGF2alpha was significantly higher in corpora lutea immediately after ovulation (26-7 +/- 3-9 (S.E.M.) ng/g, P less than 0-005) and in corpora albicantia (16-3 +/- 3-3 ng/g, P less than 0-005) than at any other time during the luteal phase. There was no correlation between the concentration of PGF2alpha, and that of any steroid. The progesterone concentration was highest in corpora lutea just after ovulation (24-9 +/-6-7 microng/g) and in early luteal groups (25-7 +/- 6-8 microng/g) but declined significantly (P less than 0-05) to its lowest level in corpora albicantia (1-82 +/- 0-66 microng/g). The concentration of oestradiol-17beta in the corpus luteum and luteal weight were significantly greater during the mid-luteal phase than at any other stage (concentration 282 +/- 43 ng/g), P less than 0-05; weight 1-86 +/- 0-18 g, P less than 0-005). The results indicate that regression of the human corpus luteum is not caused by a rise in the ovarian concentration of PGF2alpha in the late luteal phase of the cycle.