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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 20 November 2017
The mid-gestation peak in activity of the fetal gonadotrophic axis is thought to be crucial for normal reproductive development. It is clear that the increase to mid-gestation is a result of the concomitant rise in gonadotrophs (Thomas et al., 1993). The mechanisms responsible for the decrease after mid-gestation are unclear, but may involve feedback from the placental steroids (Challis et al., 1981; Gluckman et al., 1983). The aim was to determine the roles of the placental steroids, progesterone and oestradiol, in the late-gestation decline in fetal gonadotrophins using the oestradiol antagonist ICI 182,780 and the progesterone antagonist RU486.