BACKGROUND The initial diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy depends on physical examination, ultrasound, and serial measurements of total β-subunit of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCGβ) concentrations in serum. The aim of this study was to explore the possibility of using quantitative analysis of total hCGβ in urine rather than in serum by immunomagnetic reduction (IMR) assay as an alternative metho...

BACKGROUND First-trimester prenatal screening for aneuploidy by use of dried blood spots (DBSs) may offer practical benefits in settings where the instability of intact human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) is problematic. We evaluated a DBS pregnancy-associated plasma protein A (PAPP-A) and free β-subunit of hCG (free hCGβ) dual assay and compared it to serum screening. METHODS Hematocrit-corre...

We previously demonstrated that human chorionic gonadotropin β (hCGβ) induced migration and invasion in human prostate cancer cells. However, the involved molecular mechanisms are unclear. Here, we established a stable prostate cancer cell line overexpressing hCGβ and tested hCGβ-triggered signaling pathways causing cell migration and invasion. ELISA showed that the hCGβ amount secreted into me...

Expression of human chorionic gonadotropin, especially its free β subunit (hCGβ) were shown to play an important role in cancer growth, invasion and metastasis. It is postulated that hCGβ is one of the factors determining cancer cell survival. To test this hypothesis, we applied two models: an in vitro model of ovarian cancer using OVCAR-3 and SKOV-3 cell lines transfected with the CGB5 gene an...

The term human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) refers to a group of 5 molecules, each sharing the common amino acid sequence but each differing in meric structure and carbohydrate side chain structure. The 5 molecules are each produced by separate cells and each having separate biological functions. hCG and sulfated hCG are hormones produced by placental syncytiotrophoblast cells and pituitary gon...

Female infertility is often associated with deregulation of hormonal networks, and hyperprolactinemia is one of the most common endocrine disorders of the hypothalamic-pituitary axis affecting the reproductive functions. We have shown previously that transgenic female mice overexpressing human chorionic gonadotropin β-subunit (hCGβ+ mice), and producing elevated levels of bioactive LH/hCG, exhi...

Transgenic female mice overexpressing the hCGβ subunit (hCGβ(+)) and producing elevated levels of luteinizing hormone (LH)/hCG bioactivity present as young adults with enhanced ovarian steroidogenesis, precocious puberty, and infertility. They subsequently develop pituitary prolactinomas, high circulating prolactin (PRL) levels, and marked mammary gland lobuloalveolar development followed by ad...

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES Triple test as prenatal screening procedure does not form a part of routine health care of pregnant women in India. Hence, median values of triple test biomarkers are lacking for Indian population. This study was undertaken to establish population-specific medians for biomarkers viz. alpha-foetoprotien (AFP), human chorionic gonadotropin (hCGβ), and unconjugated estriol ...

.....................................................................................................................................7 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................9 REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE................................................................................................10 ...

BACKGROUND Ectopic secretion of human chorionic gonadotrophin free beta (hCGβ) by epithelial cancer is associated with aggressive tumors which more readily metastasize, possibly by acting as an autocrine anti-apoptotic agent. hCGβ is encoded by six homologous CGB genes, with poorly-understood variable transcriptionally active expression profiles; CGB1 and CGB2 have always been considered pseudo...