science

Gonadotropin preparations

Gonadotropin preparations is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Gonadotropin preparations rather than just read about it. In short: Gonadotropin preparations are drugs that mimic the physiological effects of gonadotropins, used therapeutically mainly as fertility medication for ovarian hyperstimulation and ovulation induction. For example, the so-called menotropins consist of LH and FSH extracted from human urine from menopausal women.

Key takeaways

Gonadotropin preparations belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Gonadotropin preparations to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Gonadotropin preparations from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Gonadotropin preparations are drugs that mimic the physiological effects of gonadotropins, used therapeutically mainly as fertility medication for ovarian hyperstimulation and ovulation induction. For example, the so-called menotropins consist of LH and FSH extracted from human urine from menopausal women. There are also recombinant variants.

FSH and LH preparations hMG (human Menopausal Gonadotrophins), FSH and LH prepared from human urine collected from postmenopausal women. First extracted in 1953. Injected intra-muscularily (IM) or subcutaneously (SC). Generic

menotropins for injections, USP Brands

Menopur, 5 mL vials containing 75 IU FSH and 75 IU LH. Repronex, vials containing either 75 IU FSH and 75 IU LH, or 150 IU FSH and 150 IU LH. Common side effects of preparations containing FSH and LH are:

Mild bloating Pain, swelling, or irritation injection site Rash at injection site or other part of body Stomach pain or pelvic pain

FSH preparations Preparations of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) mainly include those derived from the urine of menopausal women, as well as recombinant preparations. The recombinant preparations are more pure and more easily administered, but they are more expensive. The urinary preparations are equally effective and less expensive, but are not as convenient to administer as they are available in vials versus injection pens. One study reported that users of the purified urinary FSH preparation Bravelle experienced less injection site pain compared to the recombinant preparation Follistim.

Urinary preparations Purified urinary FSH (75 IU FSH and ≤ 2 IU of LH) Generic urofollitropin for injection, purified. Brands Bravelle, U.S., (≤ 2 IU LH) Metrodin, U.S. and Canada, (≤ 1 IU LH) Fertinorm Hp, (Canada) Highly purified urinary FSH (75 IU FSH and ≤ 0.1 IU LH/1000 IU FSH) Generic urofollitropin for injection, (highly) purified. Brands Fertinex (≤ 0.1 IU LH/1000 IU FSH)

Recombinant preparations Follitropin alfa Generic Follitropin alfa injection Brands Gonal-f Cinnal-f Fertilex Ovaleap Bemfola Generic Follitropin alfa / lutropin alfa combination Brands Pergoveris Follitropin beta Generic follitropin beta injection Brands Follistim AQ Puregon Follitropin delta Generic follitropin delta injection Brands Rekovelle The package insert for Gonal-f states that based on physio-chemical tests and bioassays that follitropin beta and follitropin alfa are indistinguishable. Two studies showed no difference. However, a more recent study showed there may be a slight clinical difference, with the alfa form tending towards a higher pregnancy rate and the beta form tending towards a lower pregnancy rate, but with significantly higher estradiol (E2) levels. The package insert for Puregon states that structural analysis shows that the amino acid sequence of follitropin beta is identical to that of natural human follicle stimulating hormone (hFSH). Further, the ogliosaccharide side chains are very similar, but not completely identical to that of natural hFSH. However, these small differences do not affect the bioactivity compared to natural hFSH. Gonal-f was approved for medical use in the European Union in October 1995. Puregon was approved for medical use in the European Union in February 1996. Rekovelle was approved for medical use in the European Union in December 2016.

Biosimilars

Ovaleap was approved for medical use in the European Union in September 2013. It was approved for medical use in Australia in March 2021. Bemfola was approved for medical use in the European Union in March 2014.

Side effects of FSH preparations Side effects of FSH preparations include:

Local irritation at the injection site Feeling of fullness, bloating, and tenderness in the lower abdomen due to increasing size of the ovaries. Mood swings Fatigue

FSH analogues Corifollitropin alfa Merck received approval on February 15, 2010, from the European Commission for ELONVA (corifollitropin alfa) a long lasting single injection fusion protein lacking LH activity. Only one injection is required for the first seven days, replacing the first seven daily injections of conventional FSH. Initial results demonstrates similar pregnancy rates as daily recombinant FSH injections.

LH (Luteinizing hormone) preparations

Prepared from recombinant DNA.

Generic lutropin alfa for injection Brands Luveris

hCG preparations Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) can be recovered from the urine of pregnant women or be produced from recombinant DNA. It acts similarly to LH, but the larger supply makes it less costly; it also has a longer half-life. In veterinary medicine, equine chorionic gonadotropin (eCG) extracted from pregnant mare serum is used instead on a variety of mammals, sometimes eliciting an immune response in non-horse species. In Women: Used to induce final maturation of follicle and subsequent ovulation. Also used for luteal phase support. In men: Used to treat select cases of Hypogonadotropic Hypogonadism in adult males. In off-label use, some urologists prescribe hCG in low doses in combination with testosterone replacement to preserve fertility. In male children: Also used to treat prepubertal cryptorchidism not due to anatomical obstruction. Therapy is usually administered between ages 4 and 9.

Urinary preparations

Derived from the urine of pregnant women.

Generic (human) chorionic gonadotropin for injection, USP Brands Pregnyl (Merck/Schering-Plough) Follutein Profasi Novarel

Recombinant preparations

Generic choriogonadotropin alfa for injection (recombinant human Chorionic Gonadotropin, r-hCG). Brands Ovidrel

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Gonadotropin preparations

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Gonadotropin preparations claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Gonadotropin preparations before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Gonadotropin preparations ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Gonadotropin preparations

In research: Gonadotropin preparations appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Gonadotropin preparations in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Gonadotropin preparations is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Animal reproductive system, Drugs developed by Merck, Drugs developed by Merck & Co., so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Gonadotropin preparations outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Gonadotropin preparations in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Gonadotropin preparations means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Gonadotropin preparations out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Gonadotropin preparations in simple terms?

Why does Gonadotropin preparations matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Gonadotropin preparations?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Gonadotropin preparations.