TY  - EJOU
AU  - ESPINOSA, MARÍA B. 

TI  - The ovary of <i>Lagostomus maximus</i> (Mammalia, Rodentia): an analysis by confocal microscopy
T2  - BIOCELL

PY  - 2011
VL  - 35
IS  - 2
SN  - 1667-5746

AB  - <i>Lagostomus maximus</i> is a notable mammalian model for reproductive studies. Females have
an extremely high ovulation rate, which is due to down-regulation of the follicular apoptosis pathway, which
ensures a large pool of developing follicles. This large pool is supported by the convoluted anatomy of the
mature ovary, whose germinal tissue is found in irregularly curved ridges throughout the cortex. Medullary
tissue is restricted to a minimum. Lyso Tracker Red reconstruction under confocal laser scanning microscopy
was used to recognize and measure all follicular stages from primordial to antral. Unlike most mammals in
which early primordial follicles are just found in fetal life, the adult ovary shows regions packed with early
primordial follicles. Follicle size ranged from 24 to 316 μm. We discuss the relationships of <i>L. maximus</i>
follicles size with regard to other species of mammals and propose that the physiology of the adult viscacha
ovary obeys to a neoteny process in the evolution of this species.
KW  - rodents
KW  -  germ cells
KW  -  three-dimensional analysis

DO  - 10.32604/biocell.2011.35.037