Suppression of Daytime and Nighttime Luteinizing Hormone Frequency by Progesterone
Status:
Recruiting
Trial end date:
2021-12-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
During childhood, the levels of certain hormones: gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH),
luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), estrogen, and progesterone are
very low. However, when puberty starts, GnRH and LH pulses begin to increase, but they
initially do so at night only. It is unknown why GnRH and LH pulses increase at night and
then decrease during the day (instead of being increased all the time). The purpose of this
study is to see how quickly progesterone reduces LH pulses. The study is also meant to find
out whether too much testosterone (also a hormone) in the blood causes problems with the
ability of progesterone to reduce LH pulses. In this study, the investigators aim to discover
whether or not giving 3 small doses of progesterone to pubertal girls will prevent the
nighttime increase of LH pulses. From the information gathered in this study, the
investigators may be able to learn more about how menstrual cycles are normally established
in girls during puberty. Ultimately, if the investigators understand these normal processes,
the investigators may be able to better understand abnormalities of puberty.
Phase:
Phase 1
Details
Lead Sponsor:
University of Virginia
Collaborator:
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)