Histochemical features of the structure of fetal ovaries in different stages of gestation from mothers with physiological pregnancy

Abstract

In the following article specific hystochemical features of the fetal ovaries’ structure from mothers with the physiological pregnancy are considered. All fetals were divided into subgroups by taking into consideration the term of gestation, as well as main stages of fetal gonads’ formation and laying. Namely: 21-28 weeks, 29-36 weeks, 37-40 weeks. All fetuses had died intranatally, as a result of acute uterine-placental circulation. The course of pregnancy in all cases was psychological, according to appropriate medical documentation. In the aim of reaching the scientific goal the following research methods were used: macroscopic, organometric, histological, histochemichal, morphometric, statistical. The comprehensive study has revealed the following features of the ovaries’ structure, depending on gestational term: weight, length, thickness, width and volume of the ovaries were reaching their minimum levels in case of fetuses with a gestational age of 21-28 weeks, while the maximum one was reached in case of fetuses on 37-42 weeks of gestation. All gonads are represented by cortical and cerebral matter, with the constant ratio despite of different gestational term. According to the growth of pregnancy term the number of germ cells decreases, while the number of apoptotically altered forms oppositely increases. Primarily it is because of the psychological cells’ death during ovarian formation.

The follicular component at all stages of gestation is represented by primordial and primary follicles; at the 37-40 weeks though the atretic forms and cystically altered specimens are appearing. Moreover, in accordance with the growth of the pregnancy term, the number of primordial follicles decreases, while oppositely, the number of primary ones increases. The aforementioned changes lead to the decrease in the relative volume of follicular tissue and to the increase of the relative volume of the interstitial component. By the following histochemical methods (Felgen-Rossenbeck reaction, Brache reaction, Schiff-reaction) an increase in the functional activity of the fetal ovaries was revealed, by reaching its maximum point during gestation of the 37-40 weeks. The aforementioned features correspond with gestational terms as well as with stages of the ovarian development of the fetus. That is why they could be used as a control group during leading a research on characteristical features of fetal gonads structure of fetuses from mothers with complicated pregnancies.