Glynn B P, Wolton A, Rodríguez-Liñares B, Phaneuf S, Linton E A
Nuffield Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Oxford, Women's Centre, John Radcliffe Hospital, United Kingdom.
Am J Obstet Gynecol. 1998 Aug;179(2):533-9. doi: 10.1016/s0002-9378(98)70391-6.
The aim of this study was to investigate the possibility that urocortin is the ligand that displaces corticotropin-releasing hormone from its binding protein in the maternal circulation during pregnancy and, if so, to determine whether urocortin, like corticotropin-releasing hormone, is synthesized in substantial quantities in the placenta.
A radioimmunoassay specific for urocortin was developed and used for measurement of the peptide in chorionic villi and fetal membranes (amnion and chorion) from normal and preeclamptic pregnancies. These tissues were also assayed for corticotropin-releasing hormone. Assays for urocortin were also carried out on normal term pregnant and nonpregnant myometrium and on plasma from nonpregnant individuals, and assays for both peptides were performed on sequential normal pregnancy plasma samples taken from mid gestation until term.
Corticotropin-releasing hormone was present in normal term (1904 +/- 489 pg/g) and preeclamptic placentas (5897 +/- 1526 pg/g) and in normal term fetal membranes (645 +/- 155 pg/g, n = 6 in all cases). Urocortin was not detected in any of the tissues studied, nor was it found in the normal human plasma samples. Unlike the situation for corticotropin-releasing hormone, no pregnancy-related pattern was seen for urocortin in the plasma from pregnant women.
Urocortin is not translated to any great extent in the pregnancy tissues investigated, nor is it present in the circulation of pregnant women in detectable amounts. Furthermore, it is unlikely that urocortin is responsible for the high maternal plasma levels of free corticotropin-releasing hormone circulating in the latter stages of pregnancy, but this does not preclude the possibility that another, as yet uncharacterized, corticotropin-releasing hormone-like peptide may be.
本研究旨在探讨在孕期母体循环中尿皮质素是否为从其结合蛋白上取代促肾上腺皮质激素释放激素的配体；若如此，则确定尿皮质素是否如促肾上腺皮质激素释放激素一样在胎盘中大量合成。
开发了一种针对尿皮质素的放射免疫分析法，并用于检测正常妊娠和先兆子痫妊娠的绒毛膜绒毛及胎膜（羊膜和绒毛膜）中的该肽。这些组织也进行了促肾上腺皮质激素释放激素的检测。还对足月妊娠和未妊娠的子宫肌层以及未妊娠个体的血浆进行了尿皮质素检测，并且对从妊娠中期至足月采集的连续正常妊娠血浆样本进行了两种肽的检测。
促肾上腺皮质激素释放激素存在于足月（1904±489 pg/g）和先兆子痫胎盘（5897±1526 pg/g）以及足月胎膜（645±155 pg/g，所有病例n = 6）中。在所研究的任何组织中均未检测到尿皮质素，在正常人体血浆样本中也未发现。与促肾上腺皮质激素释放激素的情况不同，孕妇血浆中的尿皮质素未呈现与妊娠相关的模式。
在所研究的妊娠组织中，尿皮质素未大量翻译，在孕妇循环中也未检测到可检测量。此外，尿皮质素不太可能是导致妊娠后期母体循环中游离促肾上腺皮质激素释放激素高水平的原因，但这并不排除可能存在另一种尚未鉴定的促肾上腺皮质激素释放激素样肽的可能性。
