Progynon

Progynon was an orally active formulation of estrogen that was developed by Adolf Butenandt at Schering and introduced in Germany in 1928. It was reportedly the first sex hormone product and hence also the first estrogen product to be introduced for medical use. Progynon was originally an ovarian or placental extract, but Schering soon switched for economic reasons to using the urine of women who were in late pregnancy. This form of Progynon was essentially the same product as Emmenin, which was developed by James Collip at Ayerst and introduced in Canada in 1930 (and in the U.S. in 1934). Both products contained a mixture of water-soluble estrogens, which was determined later to be mostly estriol glucuronide. Conjugates of estriol like estriol glucuronide and estriol sulfate constitute more than 90% of the estrogens in the urine of pregnant women. Of these conjugates, 35 to 46% are estriol glucuronide and 15 to 22% are estriol sulfate in late pregnancy; the double conjugate estriol sulfate glucuronide also occurs.

To further reduce the costs of manufacturing Progynon, Schering eventually switched to using the urine of pregnant mares and called its new product Progynon 2. Ayerst followed suit, with the introduction of Premarin (conjugated equine estrogens) in 1941.

Progynon was also the name that Butenandt originally gave estrone (which he had isolated in 1929) in his first publication on the substance (and later referred to as folliculine, with the name estrone not finally being adopted until 1935). Aside from Progynon and Progynon 2, the Progynon name has also been used in a variety of other estrogenic products marketed by Schering. Examples include Progynon-B (estradiol benzoate), Progynon-DH (estradiol; "dihydroxyestrin"), Progynon-DP (estradiol dipropionate), Progynon-C (ethinylestradiol), Progynova (estradiol valerate), and Progynon Depot (estradiol valerate, estradiol undecylate).