The development and evaluation of Sevatest ELISA hCG Micro I. kit as a test for pregnancy.

The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method of sandwich type for determination of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) in serum or urine using horseradish peroxidase as an enzyme label and microtiter ELISA plates (or polystyrene microtubes respectively) as a solid phase support for antibody was developed. Test sensitivity of 200 mIU hCG per milliliter is approximately sixfold greater than the available hemo- or latex agglutination tests; quantitative hCG ELISA method has sensitivity of 6 mIU hCG per milliliter. In order to evaluate the usefulness of the method for early pregnancy detection 5,000 urine samples were prospectively collected and results correlated with outcome of pregnancy. Reliability of the test performed on routine basis at the Institute for the Care of Mother and Child in Prague proved to be 97.2% for intrauterine pregnancy detection, in 2.52% the test result was "+ -", and only in 0.28% the results were erroneous. For samples sent with the diagnosis of suspected extrauterine pregnancy 93.5% of correct results, 4.35% of "+ -" and 2.17% of erroneous results was found.

PIP: The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method of sandwich type for determination of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) in serum or urine using horseradish peroxidase as an enzyme label and microtiter ELISA plates (or polystyrene microtubes respectively) as a solid phase support for antibody was developed. Test sensitivity of 200 mIU hCG/milliliter is approximately 6 times greater than the available hemo- or latex agglutination tests; quantitative hCG ELISA method has sensitivity of 6 mIU hCG/milliliter. In order to evaluate the usefulness of the method for early pregnancy detection, 5000 urine samples were prospectively collected and results correlated with outcome of pregnancy. Reliability of the test performed on a routine basis at the Institute for the Care of Mother and Child in Prague proved to be 97.2% for intrauterine pregnancy detection, in 2.52% of the test result was "+ -", and only in 0.28% were the test results in error. For samples sent with the diagnosis of suspected extrauterine pregnancy, 93.5% were correct results, 4.35% were "+ -", and 2.17% were results in error.

Pregnancy-induced morphologic changes in lymphocytes; an experimental study on materno-fetal tolerance in the rat.

Morphological changes in lymphocyte nucleoli were examined in the course of pregnancy in rats. Small amounts of lymphocytes became activated, most of them producing micronucleoli. These findings show the same changes as found in the course of pregnancy in women. Subcutaneous administration of human placental eluate to non-pregnant rats induced a low degree of activation and high micronucleoli formation, dependent on the dose of placental antigen. Repeated administration of increasing doses of placental eluate revealed almost the same morphological changes in lymphocyte nucleoli as seen in normal pregnancy. This is considered an experimental verification that the morphological changes in lymphocyte nucleoli during pregnancy are due to permanent and gradually increasing doses of foreign antigen.

Effects of postnatal progesterone treatment on ovarian function in adult rats.

Long-lasting postnatal progesterone administration in female rats induced an early or delayed ovulatory failure with persistent vaginal estrus. Short-term treatment was ineffective. The beginning and incidence of ovulatory failure appeared to depend on the beginning and duration of progresterone treatment. The necessary duration of progesterone administration exceeds the critical postnatal steroid sensitive period of sexual differentiation of the hypothalamus. Moreover, long-lasting progesterone treatment results in ovulatory failure even if started after termination of this period.

Developmental changes in uptake of 3H-progesterone by rat ovaries.

3H-progesterone uptakes by the ovaries and skeletal muscles were compared in newborn female Wistar rats and in other females aged five, ten, 15, 20, 25, and 50 days, two hours after one single intraperitoneal injection of 50 muCi/100 g body weight. The ratio of the concentration of radioactivity between the ovaries and the skeletal muscle increased significantly at the age of 15 days. The increase in ovary/skeletal muscle raio (characterised by a logistic curve) suggests the first appearance of specific binding capacity for progesterone, coinciding with an increase in plasma progesterone level and beginning of the distince atretic changes in compact and cavitated follicles simultaneously with the attainment of capability to ovulate following adequate exogenous gonadotropic stimulation. The early postnatal period of protective short-term treatment, using progesterone, against the early androgen or oestrogen syndrome of anovulatory sterility and/or noxious long-term treatment, using progesterone, inducing a delayed anovulatory syndrome precedes the beginning of preferential accumulation of 3H-progesterone in the ovary.