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The placenta (pl.: placentas or placentae) is a temporary embryonic and later fetal organ that begins developing from the blastocyst shortly after implantation.It plays critical roles in facilitating nutrient, gas and waste exchange between the physically separate maternal and fetal circulations, and is an important endocrine organ, producing hormones that regulate both maternal and fetal ...
The fetal-placental unit secretes steroid hormones and proteins that alter the function of various maternal endocrine glands. Sometimes, the changes in certain hormone levels and their effects on their target organs can lead to gestational diabetes and gestational hypertension .
With sustained fasting, maternal ketones formed from free fatty acids can cross the placenta and be used by the fetus. These functions help support fetal nutrition even in the case of maternal malnutrition. hPL is a potent agonist of the prolactin receptor and a weak agonist of the growth hormone receptor. [5]
These hormones are central to the complex endocrine system that regulates normal growth, sexual development, and reproductive function. [4] LH and FSH are secreted by the anterior pituitary gland, while hCG and eCG are secreted by the placenta in pregnant women and mares, respectively. [5]
The fetal endocrine system is one of the first systems to develop during prenatal development of a human individual. The endocrine system arises from all three embryonic germ layers. The endocrine glands that produce the steroid hormones, such as the gonads and adrenal cortex, arise from the mesoderm.
Hormones are synthesized in certain organs, including the ovaries, placenta, and pituitary gland. [1] These hormones have essential functions in pregnancy test, maintaining the uterine lining, fetal development, preventing premature labor, and the initiation and support of labor.
Image showing trophoblast differentiated into the two layers of cytotrophoblast and syncytiotrophoblast during implantation. It is the outer layer of the trophoblasts and actively invades the uterine wall, during implantation, rupturing maternal capillaries and thus establishing an interface between maternal blood and embryonic extracellular fluid, facilitating passive exchange of material ...
The function of placentation is to transfer nutrients, respiratory gases, and water from maternal tissue to a growing embryo, and in some instances to remove waste from the embryo. Placentation is best known in live-bearing mammals ( Theria ), but also occurs in some fish, reptiles, amphibians, a diversity of invertebrates, and flowering plants .