Consequences of accelerated ovum transport, including a re-evaluation of Estes' operation
Adams, C.E.
Journal of Reproduction and Fertility 55(1): 239-246
1979
ISSN/ISBN: 0022-4251 PMID: 370381 DOI: 10.1530/jrf.0.0550239Document Number: 448769
From a review of work on ovum transport in the rabbit, mouse, rat and ferret, 2 possibilities are suggested to account for the loss of transferred eggs: expulsion from the uterus or degeneration in utero. In an attempt to resolve this problem, the effect of the age of the egg on its retention in the rabbit uterus was investigated. 450 eggs were transferred to the uteri of 43 recipients 24-84 h after ovulation. 82 of 85 eggs transferred at 24 or 36 h after ovulation were recovered from the vagina, and 48 h after ovulation 25 of 36 eggs transferred were still to be found in the vagina. Thus, the normal time of entry of rabbit eggs into the uterus (74-78 h post coitum) is associated with the max. period of uterine retention. In a 2nd experiment, in which 40 and 42 eggs were transferred 12 and 24 h resp. after ovulation, 28 and 23 perished within 24 h of transfer, and the remainder were abnormal. Of 40 transferred 36 h after ovulation, 20 were recovered 3 days later but had failed to implant; 17 of 20 eggs transferred at 48 h after ovulation had implanted. The results suggest that failure to implant is due to expulsion of eggs rather than endometrial incompatibility.