Britannica
Sources used in this answer
- childhood disease and disorder - Diseases transmitted through the placenta or due to placental dysfunction
- hormone - Progestins
- human development - Hormones and growth
- human endocrine system - Parenting behaviour
- human endocrine system - Growth and differentiation
- Animal development - Adaptations in mammals
How do hormones from the placenta, mother, and fetus influence fetal development?
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human endocrine system
The principal glands of the female and male human endocrine systems.
The mammalian fetus develops within the uterus as part of an integrated system known as the fetoplacental unit, where it is under the powerful influence of hormones produced by the mother, the placenta, and the fetus itself.1
- Maternal Influence: Maternal endocrine glands ensure that a proper mixture of nutrients is transferred to the fetus via the placenta. Additionally, maternal hormones are present in breast milk and are transferred to the suckling young after birth.1
- Placental Influence: The placenta acts as an endocrine organ that supports pregnancy. In humans, it secretes hormones such as human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) and human placental lactogen, which help stimulate luteal secretion. By the second month of human pregnancy, the placenta begins manufacturing estrogen and progestin, assuming the role previously held by the corpus luteum for maintaining the pregnancy.2
- Fetal Influence: The fetus plays an active role in this endocrine complex. For example, the placenta synthesizes much of its estrogen using compounds (such as dehydroepiandrosterone) derived from the fetal adrenal glands. Furthermore, testosterone secreted by the fetal testes is essential for the development of the male genital apparatus; without this specific hormonal signal, the genitalia develop into the female form.23