Progesterone is secreted from a female's _____ to help the implanted embryo and continue the pregnancy.

Question

Options

• ACorpus luteum
• BMesoderm
• CEndoderm
• DThyroid

• A
  83% (20)
• B
  4% (1)
• C
  8% (2)
• D
  4% (1)

Explanation

Corpus luteum is the correct answer because after ovulation, the ruptured follicle transforms into the corpus luteum - a temporary endocrine structure in the ovary that secretes progesterone to maintain the uterine lining and support early pregnancy until the placenta takes over.

Why the distractors are wrong:

• B. Mesoderm - this is an embryonic germ layer that develops into muscles, bones, and connective tissue; it has no hormonal secretory function.
• C. Endoderm - another embryonic germ layer (giving rise to the gut lining and organs like the liver), also not a hormone-secreting structure in this context.
• D. Thyroid - the thyroid gland produces thyroid hormones (T3/T4) and calcitonin, not progesterone; it is not part of the female reproductive hormone axis.

Memory tip: Think "Corpus luteum = Corpus = Body of yellow" - after ovulation the follicle turns yellow (luteum = Latin for yellow) and becomes the progesterone factory. If the egg is fertilized, the corpus luteum keeps producing progesterone until the placenta is established around weeks 8–10.

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