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Human Reproduction Update Advance Access originally published online on December 23, 2004
Human Reproduction Update 2005 11(2):123-135; doi:10.1093/humupd/dmh057
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Human Reproduction Update Vol. 11 No. 2 © European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology 2004; all rights reserved

Inhibins in female and male reproductive physiology: role in gametogenesis, conception, implantation and early pregnancy

Stefano Luisi1, Pasquale Florio1, Fernando M. Reis2 and Felice Petraglia1,3

1 Department of Pediatrics, Obstetrics and Reproductive Medicine, University of Siena, Italy and 2 Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil

3 To whom correspondence should be addressed at: Department of Pediatrics, Obstetrics and Reproductive Medicine, University of Siena, Policlinico ‘Le Scotte’, viale Bracci, 53100 Siena, Italy. Email: petraglia{at}unisi.it

A great deal of new information has arisen in the recent years concerning inhibin physiology and clinical relevance in reproductive medicine. It is now recognized that the two inhibin isoforms, named inhibin A and inhibin B, are produced by the gonads in the course of gamete maturation and in women have a different pattern of secretion throughout the menstrual cycle. Since inhibins are also produced by placenta and fetal membranes, it has been suggested that there is an involvement in physiological adaptation of pregnancy. Evidence from several sources has underlined the clinical usefulness of the measurement of inhibin-related proteins in the diagnosis and follow-up of different fertility disturbances and early pregnancy viability. In the male, inhibin B is produced in the testis, principally by the Sertoli cells. Inhibin B expression and secretion are positively correlated with Sertoli cell function, sperm number, and spermatogenic status and are negatively correlated with FSH. This review covers the most recent advances on the role of inhibins in human reproductive function. Considerable progress in the understanding of inhibin physiology has resulted from selective measurement of the two inhibin molecular forms, named inhibin A and B. Newly recognized alterations of inhibin levels in gynaecological diseases as well as in normal and pathological pregnancy are discussed, with particular emphasis on the potential clinical usefulness of assessing inhibin levels in serum and other biological fluids.

Key words: implantation / inhibin / ovary / pregnancy / testis


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