Study summary · research use only
Perinatal growth hormone (GH) physiology: effect of GH-releasing factor on maternal and fetal secretion of pituitary and placental GH
Plain-language summary
Paraphrased from the published abstract below — not a verdict on whether anything works.
This human study examined regulation of pituitary growth hormone (hGH) and placental growth hormone (hPGH) secretion by administering the GH-releasing factor Sermorelin [GRF-(1-29)-NH2] to five pregnant women at term just before elective cesarean section, compared with saline in five control studies. Cord and maternal serum hGH, GRF-(1-29)-NH2, and maternal hPGH were measured at birth, with a mean interval of 20 min (range 15-25 min) between injection and birth. Cord serum hGH was similar between groups; GRF-(1-29)-NH2 produced a small rise in maternal hGH (P = 0.08) but hPGH was unchanged, and GRF-(1-29)-NH2 was undetectable in cord serum despite being detectable in maternal serum. The authors concluded maternal pituitary hGH secretion at term is suppressed, GRF does not affect hPGH secretion, and fetal hGH secretion appears independent of circulating maternal GRF.
Abstract
To study regulation of the secretion of human pituitary GH (hGH) and placental GH (hPGH) in the pregnant woman and human fetus, the GH-releasing factor Sermorelin [GRF-(1-29)-NH2] was administered to pregnant women at term (n = 5), just before elective cesarean section; saline was administered in control studies (n = 5). The effects of GRF-(1-29)-NH2 administration on maternal and fetal serum concentrations of hGH and GRF-(1-29)-NH2 and maternal serum levels of hPGH were evaluated at birth. The mean time span between injection and birth was 20 min (range, 15-25 min). Cord serum hGH concentrations were similar in infants of GRF-(1-29)-NH2-injected mothers and control infants. GRF-(1-29)-NH2 elicited a consistent but small rise in maternal hGH serum concentrations (P = 0.08), whereas hPGH concentrations remained unaltered. Finally, GRF-(1-29)-NH2 concentrations were undetectable in cord serum, but readily detectable in concomitantly obtained maternal serum. In conclusion, these data suggest that hGH secretion in the pregnant woman at term is suppressed at the pituitary level, that GRF does not affect hPGH secretion, and that fetal hGH secretion is independent of circulating maternal GRF, probably because of lack of transplacental GRF passage.
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