Exploration of the human fetal pituitary adrenal axis: stimulation of cortisol and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate biosynthesis by homologous pituitary in organ culture.

Abstract Adrenals obtained from human abortices at midpregnancy were kept under conditions of tissue culture and the production of cortisol and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (3β-hydroxy-5-androsten-17-one, 3-sulfate; DHA-S) monitored by radioimmunoassays for up to 2 weeks. Basal production of dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate was considerably higher than that of cortisol. α 1−24 corticotrophin, α 1−39 corticotrophin, (a long acting porcine corticotrophin) at the concentration of 1 mU/ml of culture medium in both instances, and dibutyryl cyclic AMP (1mM)enhanced the production of both steroids some 3 to 30 times above control values. Medium harvested from homologous pituitary cultures had comparable corticotrophic activity. It is concluded that at midpregnancy the regulation of corticoidogenesis implies the existence of a corticotrophic factor either identical or closely related to ACTH.