Corticotrophin-releasing hormone and ACTH levels in maternal and fetal blood during spontaneous and oxytocin-induced labour

Abstract

The changes in corticotrophin-releasing hormone (CRH), ACTH and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) in maternal and fetal plasma were estimated in women undergoing spontaneous and oxytocininduced labour to correlate hormone changes with the mode of parturition. Blood was sampled from a maternal peripheral vein 2 days before labour, during the second stage of labour and on the second postnatal day, and also from umbilical vessels just after delivery. Hormone concentrations were measured by RIA and ELSA methods. The maternal plasma CRH concentration before labour was significantly higher in the group of women delivered spontaneously and declined during the labour through to the second postnatal day. Measured in umbilical vessels, CRH as well as ACTH concentrations were higher in the umbilical vein than artery. The mean maternal plasma ACTH was similar in both groups before delivery, then increased significantly in both groups during the labour, decreasing on the second day after delivery. There were no changes in DHEA concentrations among the groups and at all time points of collection. No correlations between CRH and ACTH or DHEA were observed. Our results suggest that the maternal pituitary can respond to stress factors during delivery but peripheral CRH, probably mainly of placental origin, is not a major modulator of pituitary action.

Maternal Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Disregulation during the Third Trimester Influences Human Fetal Responses

“…Although the gene encoding POMC (chromosome 2) has been detected in the human placenta [Chen et al, 1986] and peptides from POMC are synthesized in trophoblasts [Liotta et al, 1977;Liotta and Krieger, 1980], the probable source of the circulating levels of maternal BE and ACTH is the pituitary gland [Ochedalski et al, 2001;McLean and Smith, 2001;Smith, 1998]. Placental CRH is proposed to exercise paracrine control on the local production of POMC peptides [Petraglia et al, 1987;Frim et al, 1988]; however, as described above, processing of POMC in the placenta is uncertain.…”

Changes in anxiety and cognition due to reproductive experience: A review of data from rodent and human mothers

“…Accordingly, a general decrease in stress reactivity occurs during pregnancy on a variety of physical and cognitive stress tests (for a recent review, see de Weerth and Buitelaar, 2005). At parturition, HPA-associated hormones (particularly ACTH and beta-endorphins) become elevated (Fajardo et al, 1994;Ochedalski et al, 2001), although this is likely due to production by the placenta (Sasaki et al, 1988), and not due to maternal HPA activation.…”

Mifepristone: Effect on Plasma Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone, Adrenocorticotropic Hormone, and Cortisol in Term Pregnancy

“…The same conclusion is supported for ACTH, refuting reports that levels increase with labor. 21,22 Plasma cortisol increased significantly both with mifepristone exposure and with labor. We acknowledge that these latter results may be confounded by the subsequent administration of misoprostol, and in approximately half of the subjects, oxytocin.…”