PHAC 4001 Lecture Notes - Lecture 23: Sex Steroid, Corpus Albicans, Corpus Luteum

• School: Dalhousie University
• Department: Pharmacology
• Course: PHAC 4001
• Professor: Denis Dupre

Document Summary

Phac 4001 lecture 23 march 15, 2021 pituitary and gonadal hormones ii. Synthetic estrogens and progestins: review menstrual cycle and gonadal hormones, disturbances in ovarian function, hormone replacement therapy, hormonal contraception. Fluid filled antrum forms (6-10d), which is surrounded by granulosa cells and outer thecal cells: estrogen peaks before midcycle, endometrial changes. Lh/fsh surge, follicle rupture, ovulation and corpus hemorrhagicum formation. Luteinized granulosa and thecal cells form corpus luteum (cl: progesterone and estrogen production, no pregnancy: cl degenerates (corpus albicans), endometrial sloughing and menstruation. The menstrual cycle is about 28 days and it is divided into the follicular and luteal phases. Just before midcycle, as the dominant follicle is maturing, estrogen level peaks. At ovulation, the ruptured follicle is filled with blood, causing the formation of corpus hemorrhagicum and marking the start of the luteal phase. Progesterone increases the vascularization and secretory functions of the endometrium (in preparation of conception).