Identification and quantification of steroids in the serum of rainbow trout during spermiation and oocyte maturation.

17 alpha-Hydroxy-20 beta-dihydroprogesterone and 17 alpha-hydroxyprogesterone were found in higher concentrations in serum from female Salmo gairdneri undergoing final oocyte maturation immediately before ovulation than in serum from spermiating male trout. Other steroids (11-deoxycorticosterone, 11-deoxycortisol and progesterone) which have been implicated in oocyte maturation and/or ovulation in lower vertebrates were not identified at such high concentrations and the differences between the serum of both sexes were not so great. These results confirm that 17 alpha-hydroxy-20 beta-dihydroprogesterone and 17 alpha-hydroxyprogesterone, the most potent inducers of trout oocyte maturation in vitro, are present in the blood when oocyte maturation occurs. The concentration of testosterone was found to be higher in serum from female than from male trout indicating that testosterone is unlikely to be the principal androgen in trout. High concentrations of 11-oxotestosterone in male and barely detectable levels in female fish support the hypothesis that 11-oxotestosterone is an important androgen in the regulation of testicular activity.