Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: Kisspeptin is the endogenous ligand for the G-protein coupled receptor-54 (GPR54 or KiSS1R). During human pregnancy, maternal levels of placental kisspeptin dramatically increase 7000-fold. The physiological significance of this is unknown. A potential target could be the fetal adrenal cortex (FAC), which undergoes rapid growth from 10 weeks gestation, predominantly of the inner fetal zone (FZ). The FZ expresses the steroidogenic enzymes needed for conversion of ...