Early pregnancy factor in cervical mucus of pregnant women.

PROBLEM

This study was carried out to determine the presence of early pregnancy factor (EPF) activity in cervical mucus of pregnant women and explore the relationship between EPF activity in sera suggested it and in cervical mucus.

METHOD OF STUDY

Cervical mucus and sera were collected from 60 pregnant women in different terms and 25 non-pregnant women, respectively. EPF activity was detected by rosette inhibition assay.

RESULTS

EPF activity did exist in cervical mucus of pregnant women and was similar both in cervical mucus and sera.

CONCLUSIONS

We report here for the first time the EPF activity in cervical mucus of pregnant women. The parallel change observed in sera suggested it might be another useful index in evaluating embryo viability.