Steroid hormones in the ovarian blood of the laying turkey.

In the present study estrone, estradiol, progesterone, the two 20-dihydroprogesterone, 17-hydroxyprogesterone, and testosterone were isolated for the first time from the ovarian plasma of laying turkey hens. The isolated steroids were identified by comparing their chromatographic mobilities in thin-layer, liquid, and gas-liquid chromatography and, when sufficient material was isolated, by combined gas-liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry.