Corticosterone is a 21-hydroxy steroid that consists of pregn-4-ene substituted by hydroxy groups at positions 11 and 21 and oxo groups at positions 3 and 20. Corticosterone is a 21-carbon steroid hormone of the corticosteroid type produced in the cortex of the adrenal glands. It has a role as a human metabolite and a mouse metabolite. It is an 11beta-hydroxy steroid, a 21-hydroxy steroid, a 20-oxo steroid, a C21-steroid, a 3-oxo-Delta(4) steroid, a primary alpha-hydroxy ketone and a glucocorticoid. It derives from a hydride of a pregnane.