[Morphological changes in the functioning ovary of the rat after unilateral ovariectomy]

Unilateral ovariectomy was carried out of thirty female rats of the Wistar race, aged 45 days. The morphologic changes in the remaining functional ovary were followed up in compliance with the phase of the estrus cycle of the investigated animals. It was established that the greater size of the hyperthrophic ovary was due to the faster growth of follicles as well as to the increased number of corpora aliena and the strongly proliferated interstitium. In metestrus and diestrus there was also a faster process of follicular atresia. During the proestrus-estrus phase these processes involved mainly the preovulatory follicles. The morphologic changes observed in the functioning follicle were primarily due to the releasing factors and the gonadotropic hormones of the hypothalamo-hypophysial system the normal level of which proved high as they acted not on two, but on one gonad.