HOME HELP CONTACT US SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Wang, M.-W. Articles by Taussig, M. J. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Wang, M.-W. Articles by Taussig, M. J.

Anti-progesterone immunization leads to reversible infertility in mice; this can be achieved by passive immunization with a monoclonal antibody to progesterone (DB3), or by active immunization with either a progesterone–protein (bovine serum albumin; BSA) conjugate or anti-idiotype directed against DB3. Recovery of fertility in treated females varied from 39·5 to 75·5 median days after passive or active (progesterone–BSA) immunization respectively. Litter size after the first pregnancy also differed from 8·6 ±0·8 to 5·0 ±0·6 (mean ± S.E.M.) per mother after passive or active immunization respectively. When litter size was standardized to a maximum of four pups per litter, aberrant maternal responses were observed in the first 5 days after delivery in 40–70% of the nursing mothers. These responses took the forms of cannibalism and failure to retrieve or to nurse pups and resulted in a high incidence of pup rejection (up to 40%), compared with no rejection in control mothers. When mothers were allowed to keep entire litters, an even higher incidence of pup rejection occurred (51% compared with 8% in controls). There was an apparent relation between the degree of negative maternal behaviour and the progesterone antibody concentration in the circulation during the infertile period. Whereas aberrant behaviour occurred mainly within the first 5 days of lactation, it was significantly reduced thereafter. Aberrant behaviour of the mother towards pups may be a consequence of the presence of residual progesterone antibodies in the circulation which affects the process of progesterone withdrawal at parturition that is essential for the establishment of normal maternal responses to the neonate.

Journal of Endocrinology (1992) 134, 257–267

This article has been cited by other articles:

				S. M. Blois, R. Joachim, J. Kandil, R. Margni, M. Tometten, B. F. Klapp, and P. C. Arck Depletion of CD8+ Cells Abolishes the Pregnancy Protective Effect of Progesterone Substitution with Dydrogesterone in Mice by Altering the Th1/Th2 Cytokine Profile J. Immunol., May 15, 2004; 172(10): 5893 - 5899. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]