ABSTRACT. Durine intrauterine life. fetal mineral accre-METHODS tion depends on actiqe transfer from &other to fetus by the placenta. To evaluate the role of fetal production of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D in regulation of fetal phosphorus, calcium, and parathyroid homeostasis, studies were performed in ewes and their fetal lambs. Fetal nephrectomy caused a rise in fetal serum phosphorus and a fall in total calcium 5 days after nephrectomy. Fetal blood ionized calcium also fell and serum parathyroid hormone rose. In sham-nephrectomized fetuses, all four measurements were unchanged compared to control values. Simultaneous maternal values of ionized calcium were normal in control and nephrectomized fetuses. Fetal ureteral severance and drainage of urine into the fetal peritoneal cavity produced none of the effects of fetal nephrectomy. Daily intravenous injection of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D into fetuses after nephrectomy prevented the rise in serum phosphate, and serum calcium did not fall. The results suggest that fetal 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D regulates fetal phosphate homeostasis, perhaps by the placenta, which in turn regulates blood-ionized calcium concentration. (Pediatr Res 19: 566-569,1985) Abbreviations 1,25(OH)2D3, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D iPTH, immunoreactive parathyroid hormone Nx, nephrectomy During intrauterine life, fetal mineral accretion depends on active transfer from mother to fetus by the placenta (1, 2). In humans, fetal skeletal growth requires placental calcium transport of approximately 140 to 200 mg/kg fetal body weight per day in late gestation (3, 4). During pregnancy, 1,25(OH)2D3 synthesis occurs in the maternal kidney (5, 6), the placenta (7-9) and the fetal kidney (10). The relative contribution of 1,25(OH)2D3 from each of these sources to regulation of fetal mineral homeostasis is not known. In this study we present evidence that fetal kidney production of 1,25(OH)2D3 may be important in regulation of fetal serum phosphorus and calcium concentrations and to fetal parathyroid homeostasis. Animals. Three protocols were followed using ewes and their fetal lambs from 105 to 120 days of gestation, the last trimester of ovine pregnancy, which lasts 150 to 155 days. Supine ewes were anesthetized with halothane, and cesarean section was performed under sterile conditions (1 1). The distal half of the fetus was delivered from the uterus to the level of the fetal umbilicus. The fetal head remained inside the uterus, submerged in amniotic fluid to prevent fetal respirations. Catheters were sutured into a fetal femoral artery and vein for blood sampling and infusion of drugs and for blood replacement and into a branch of the femoral artery in ewes for blood sampling. An estimate of fetal growth rate during the period of observation was made by measurement of changes in crown-rump length. A 2-0 silk suture was placed in the skin over a lumbar spine with a second suture placed exactly 1.0 cm apart. At the second cesarean section, the distance between the two sutures was recorded.Following surgery for ...