Determination of estriol, estriol sulfate, progesterone and neutral steroid mono- and disulfates in umbilical cord blood plasma

Abstract

Fractions of unconjugated steroids, and steroid mono- and disulfates were isolated from cord plasma, and the concentrations of estriol, estriol sulfate, progesterone, 13 neutral steroid monosulfates (MoS) and 10 neutral steroid disulfates (DiS) were determined by gas-liquid chromatography. The mean concentrations in 30 cord plasma samples at term after normal pregnancy and delivery were as follows (μg/100 ml of free steroid ±standard deviation): estriol 16±5; estriol monosulfate 135±43; progesterone 59±19; dehydroepiandrosterone MoS 76±23; 5-androstene-3 β ,17 α -diol DiS 279±77; 5-androstene-3 β ,17 β -diol DiS 211±109; 16 α -hydroxydehydroepiandrosterone MoS 305±97; 16 β -hydroxy-dehydroepiandrosterone DiS 8±25; 33,17 β -dihydroxy-5-androsten-16-one MoS 37±16, DiS 29±15 5-androstene-3 β ,16 α ,17 β -triol MoS 25±9; 5-androstene-3 β ,16 β ,17 α -triol DiS 31±14; pregnenolone MoS 4±33; 5-pregnene-3 β ,20 α -diol MoS 41±14, DiS 68±43; 16 α -hydroxypregnenolone MoS 101±42; 17-hydroxypregnenolone MoS 56±30; 21-hydroxypregnenolone DiS 26±15; 5-pregnene-3 β ,20 α ,21-triol MoS 37±18; 5 α -pregnane-3 α ,20 α -diol MoS 21±10, DiS 54±21; 5 α -pregnane-3 β ,20 α -diol MoS 18±9, DiS 7±39; 5 β -pregnane-3 α ,20 α -diol MoS 17±7; 5 α -pregnane-3 α ,20 α ,21-triol MoS 110±56, DiS 22±19. The total amount of steroid monosulfates in the cord plasma pool was 1 mg/100 ml and that of steroid disulfates 0.5 mg/100 ml. 3 β-Hydroxy-Δ 5-steroids predominated. Considerable amounts of saturated c 21 steroids were also detected. No statistically significant differences were found in the concentrations of any of the steroids studied, when a group of male and female fetuses were compared.