11β-hydroxyprogesterone 11β-hydroxyprogesterone 11β-hydroxyprogesterone (11β-ohp), also known as 21-deoxycorticosterone, as well as 11β-hydroxypregn-4-ene-3,20-dione, is a naturally occurring, endogenous steroid and derivative of progesterone. it is a potent mineralocorticoid. syntheses of 11β-ohp from progesterone is catalyzed by the steroid 11β-hydroxylase (cyp11b1) enzyme, and, to a lesser extent, by the aldosterone synthase enzyme (cyp11b2). 11β-hydroxyprogesterone names iupac name 11β-hydroxypregn-4-ene-3,20-dione systematic iupac name (1s,3as,3bs,9ar,9bs,10s,11as)-1-acetyl-10-hydroxy-9a,11a-dimethyl-1,2,3,3a,3b,4,5,8,9,9a,9b,10,11,11a-tetradecahydro-7h-cyclopentaphenanthren-7-one other names 11β-ohp; 21-deoxycorticosterone; 21-desoxycorticosterone identifiers cas number 600-57-7 3d model (jsmol) interactive image chebi chebi:28247 chembl chembl2440888 chemspider 91968 echa infocard 100.009.088 kegg c05498 pubchem cid 101788 inchi inchi=1s/c21h30o3/c1-12(22)16-6-7-17-15-5-4-13-10-14(23)8-9-20(13,2)19(15)18(24)11-21(16,17)3/h10,15-19,24h,4-9,11h2,1-3h3/t15-,16+,17-,18-,19+,20-,21+/m0/s1key: bfzhcubiasxhpk-atwvfeabsa-n smiles cc(=o)1cc21(c(32ccc4=cc(=o)cc34c)o)c properties chemical formula c21h30o3 molar mass 330.468 g/mol except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °c , 100 kpa). infobox references function along with its epimer 11α-hydroxyprogesterone (11α-ohp), 11β-ohp has been identified as a very potent competitive inhibitor of both isoforms (1 and 2) of 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (11β-hsd). outcome of 21-hydroxylase deficiency it has been known since 1987 that increased levels of 11β-ohp occur in 21-hydroxylase deficiency. a study in 2017 has shown that in subjects with 21-hydroxylase deficiency, serum 11β-ohp concentrations range from 0.012 to 3.37 ng/ml, while in control group it was below detection limit of 0.012 ng/ml. 21-hydroxylase is an enzyme that is also involved in progesterone metabolism, producing 11-deoxycorticosterone. in normal conditions, 21-hydroxylase has higher activity on progesterone than steroid 11β-hydroxylase (cyp11b1) and aldosterone synthase (cyp11b2) that convert progesterone to 11β-ohp. that's why in 21-hydroxylase deficiency, given the normal function of the cyp11b enzymes, the progesterone is directed towards 11β-ohp pathway rather than towards 11-deoxycorticosterone pathway, that is also usually accompanied by an increase in progesterone levels. in the normal route to aldosterone and cortisol, progesterone and 17α-hydroxyprogesterone are first hydroxylated at position 21 and then hydroxylated at other positions. in 21-hydroxylase deficiency, progesterone and 17α-hydroxyprogesterone accumulate and are the substrates of steroid 11β-hydroxylase, leading to 1β-ohp and 21-deoxycortisol, respectively. in the 2017 study above mentioned, serum progesterone concentrations in boys (10 days to 18 years old) with 21-hydroxylase deficiency reached levels similar to female luteal values (up to 10.14 ng/ml, depending on severity and treatment), while in the control group of boys progesterone was 0.07 ng/ml (0.22 nmol/l) on average, ranged from 0.05 to 0.40 ng/ml. while studies suggest that 11β-ohp, also known as 21-deoxycorticosterone, can be used as marker for adrenal 21-hydroxylase deficiency, another 21-carbon steroid — 21-deoxycortisol (produced from 17α-hydroxyprogesterone) gained acceptance for this purpose.