Pregnancy tips Uterus Produces Estrogen In Pregnancy

Ovaries produce estrogen, right? Yes, and so does the uterus in pregnancy. That's news to most of us! This interesting article talks about how the uterus itself helps to support a pregnancy by producing localized estrogen. Read more:

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From the article:

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - For decades, scientists assumed that the ovary alone produced steroid hormones during pregnancy. In a new study in mice, however, researchers demonstrate that once an embryo attaches to the uterine wall, the uterus itself actually synthesizes the estrogen needed to sustain the pregnancy.

This is the first time that the uterus has been identified as an endocrine organ, said University of Illinois veterinary biosciences professor Indrani Bagchi, who led the study with doctoral student Amrita Das. Their findings appear this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.






"It's the local estrogen that's critical in maintaining the growth of blood vessels within the uterus," Das said. After an embryo implants, the researchers found, this locally produced estrogen acts in concert with progesterone secreted from the ovaries to spur the differentiation of uterine stromal cells, a process called decidualization, and promotes the growth of blood vessels that support the development of the embryo.

The researchers discovered that during decidualization, mouse uterine stromal cells increase their expression of P450 aromatase, a key enzyme that acts with other enzymes to convert androgens to estrogen.

Even in pregnant mice that have had their ovaries removed, the production of uterine estrogen is able to support the growth and differentiation of the tissue and blood vessels needed to sustain the pregnancy.