Preparation and analysis of the common urinary forms of human chorionic gonadotropin

Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) is the hormone of pregnancy and forms th e basis of all pregnancy tests as well as diagnostic assays for a variety o f pathological states including certain types of cancers and some diseases of pregnancy and genetic abnormalities. In recent years, the discovery of t he diagnostic utility of measurement of the free subunits and fragments of the hormone, especially in urine, has proven of special use for diagnosis o f very early pregnancy loss, an important phenomenon related to infertility , as well as part of screening programs for Down Syndrome and gynecological cancers. This article summarizes existing and new methods for the preparat ion of hCG, its subunits, and the beta core fragment from urinary sources, The methods for proper analyses of these materials are also described to en able investigators to prepare and analyze these materials in various quanti ties in their own laboratories. (C) 2000 Academic Press.