progesterone, hormone secreted by the female reproductive system that functions mainly to regulate the condition of the inner lining (endometrium) of the uterus. Progesterone is produced by the ovaries, placenta, and adrenal glands. The term progestin is used to describe progesterone and synthetic steroid hormones with progesterone-like properties, such as the progestogen levonorgestrel.
In the ovaries the site of progesterone production is the corpus luteum. Progesterone prepares the wall of the uterus so that the lining is able to accept a fertilized egg and so that the egg can be implanted and develop. It also inhibits muscular contractions of the uterus that would probably cause the wall to reject the adhering egg. A fertilized egg that becomes implanted in the uterus will form a placenta. The placenta then produces progesterone during the period of pregnancy. If the egg is not fertilized, progesterone is secreted by the ovaries until a few days before menstruation, at which time the level of progesterone drops sufficiently to stop the growth of the uterine wall and to cause it to start to break down, and menstruation ensues.
Progesterone is known to have effects on other female organs. In the ovaries, progesterone and estrogens are thought responsible for the release of an egg during ovulation. It is believed that if the egg is fertilized, these hormones are influential in the prevention of further egg release until the pregnancy has terminated. This dual action ordinarily prevents the release and fertilization of more than one egg at one time, although two or more eggs are occasionally released. In the fallopian tubes progesterone is thought to stop the muscular contractions in the tube once the egg has been transported. During pregnancy, progesterone also stimulates development of the glands in the breasts that are responsible for milk production.
Many oral contraceptives are composed of a synthetic progestin that inhibits egg growth and release in the ovaries and thereby prevents fertilization.