Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG)

Human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) is a peptide hormone produced during pregnancy, by the embryo shortly after conception and subsequently synthesized by the syncytiotrophoblast (part of the placenta). It serves to prevent the disintegration of the corpus luteum of the egg and thus maintains the secretion of progesterone, which is essential for human pregnancy. Containing 28-30 amino acids, it is mainly composed of two subunits, α and β, with a molecular weight of 39 kD, of which the α subunit is basically similar in structure to the prohormones secreted by the pituitary gland, such as luteinizing hormone (FSH), follicle-stimulating hormone (LH), and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), which are immunologically cross-reactive, especially luteinizing hormone. The β-subunit is unique to hCG and reflects the trophoblast value-added activity. It is a flexible and accurate method of early pregnancy diagnosis. In mature women, after the fertilized egg moves into the uterine cavity and deposits, an embryo is formed, and during the development and growth into a fetus, the placental syncytiotrophoblast cells produce large amounts of HCG, which can be excreted into the urine through the blood circulation of the pregnant woman.

KMD Bioscience, as a supplier of raw materials for in vitro diagnostics, is committed to the rapid development and large-scale production of proteins and antibodies for in vitro diagnostics. KMD Bioscience successfully develops many recombinant proteins, antibodies, antibody drug target proteins, industrial enzymes, diagnostic materials and other related reagents for scientific research and new drug discovery. KMD Bioscience adheres to independent innovation and breakthroughs in key technologies, and has obtained the national patent pilot unit and laboratory ISO9001:2015 quality management system certification and adheres to continuous optimization to effectively ensure the quality stability of products in the production process and final delivery.

The inventory of reagents associated with Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG) that KMD Bioscience can offer:

Structure of HCG:

Human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) is composed of a glycoprotein with an isoelectric point of pH = 2.95 and consists of two subunits HCG is a protein heterodimer. As a 237-amino acid heterodimer, hCG consists of α- (93-amino acid, 14.5 kD) and β- (145-amino acid, 22.2 kD) subunits noncovalently linked by charge interactions, and in total containing eight carbohydrate side chains with a molecular weight of 36.7 kDa. subunits are noncovalently linked in an antiparallel manner, i.e., in a head-to-toe fashion, such that rings 1 + 3 of one subunit are adjacent to ring 2 of the other subunit. Rings 1 and 3 of the subunit and hCG-β cystine junction are the most important antigenic regions, respectively.

Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the molecular structure of HCG

Biological functions of HCG

 The main function of HCG is to stimulate the conversion of the corpus luteum from menstrual corpus luteum to gestational corpus luteum, and at the same time to promote the continuous secretion of estrogen and progesterone, to maintain the morphology of the endometrium and to mature the growth of the placenta, to promote the conversion of androgens to estrogens by aromatization and at the same time to stimulate the formation of progesterone, to promote the formation of the uterine decidua, to inhibit the stimulating effect of phytohaemagglutinins on the lymphocytes and to adsorb on the surface of trophoblast cells, so as to avoid the mother's lymphocytes from attacking the embryonic trophoblast, stimulates testosterone secretion from fetal testes to promote male sexual differentiation, and binds to TSH receptors on maternal thyroid cells to stimulate thyroid activation, which is essential for maintaining pregnancy.

After several years of technological innovation and development, KMD Bioscience now has more than 700 subclasses of antigenic antibody products, with a wide range of layouts in cardiac markers, inflammatory markers, infectious diseases, metabolism, oncology, coagulation, thrombosis, etc., and a competitive advantage in the raw material market for cardiovascular marker detection and influenza virus detection. KMD Bioscience's recombinant antibodies have the advantages of high batch-to-batch consistency, industry-leading validation methods, improved sensitivity and confirmed specificity, easy mass production and long-term supply, and high-throughput in vitro production.