Endocrine Abstracts

Human type 2 deiodinase (hD2) regulates T3 production in placenta during trophoblast development. hD2 mRNA and protein levels are elevated only during the first trimester of gestation then becoming barely detectable. These variations are similar to those of chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), a well-known marker of early gestation secreted by the cytotrophoblast. A peculiar promoter architecture of the gene encoding the alpha subunit of hCG allows a CRE-mediated synergism between cA...