TISSUE CONCENTRATION OF OESTRONE, OESTRADIOL-17β AND OESTRIOL IN THE HUMAN FOETUS

The rôle of the human foetus in oestrogen metabolism during gestation is at present incompletely understood. High amounts of oestrogenically active material in certain foetal organs were reported by several investigators, and it has been suggested that at least a part of this oestrogen is elaborated by the foetus itself (Parker & Tenney, 1938, Lelong et al., 1951). Other investigators (e. g. Diczfalusy, 1953) are of the opinion that the oestrogen found in the foetus is entirely of placental origin, but that the foetus is capable of actively participating in the oestrogen metabolism even at a relatively early stage of gestation. Thus, a detailed investigation of the quantity and nature of tissue oestrogen in various foetal organs may yield significant information as to the rôle of the foetal organism in the oestrogen metabolism of pregnancy. The recent development of a method for the estimation of minute quantities of oestrone, oestradiol-17β