Progesterone is a hormone that is produced in the ovaries of women and female animals and helps prepare the body for pregnancy.
If the egg is not fertilised oestrogen and progesterone decrease.
progesterone in British English
(prəʊˈdʒɛstəˌrəʊn)
noun
a steroid hormone, secreted mainly by the corpus luteum in the ovary, that prepares and maintains the uterus for pregnancy. Formula: C21H30O2
Also called: corpus luteum hormone
Word origin
C20: from pro-1 + ge(station) + ster(ol) + -one
progesterone in American English
(proʊˈdʒɛstərˌoʊn)
noun
a steroid hormone, C21H30O2, secreted by the corpus luteum or prepared synthetically, active in preparing the uterus for the reception and development of the fertilized ovum and the mammary glands for milk secretion