Estrogens and Progesterone in the Sea Urchin (Strongylocentrotus franciscanus) and Pecten (Pecten hericius).

Abstract

SummaryThe ovaries of the sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus franciscanus, and the pecten, Pecten hericius, were extracted for steroids. Estrogenic activity equivalent to 10 μg or less per kilo of wet tissue was found in each species by bioassay. The most active estrogenic substance was identified as estradiol-17β. Separations were made by counter-current distribution (29 transfers: upper phase—70% methanol; lower phase—50% chloroformic, 50% carbon tetrachloride), paper chromatography (3 systems: toluene-propylene glycol; ligroin-propylene glycol; benzene-formamide), and bioassay (Astwood method). Progesterone was also identified tentatively by column chromatography and the Hooker-Forbes assay. Other progestational substances were present, one of which may be Δ4-3-keto-pregnen-20β-ol. The occurrence of these steroids in 2 distinctly different phyla indicates a wide distribution and may be of some significance in the evolution of sex hormones.