Germinal epithelium (female)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Germinal epithelium (female)
Ovaire 1.JPG
Diagram in French. "Epithelium ovarien" labeled at upper right.
Gray1163.png
Section of the ovary. 1. Germinal epithelium. 2. Central stroma. 3. Peripheral stroma. 4. Bloodvessels. 5. Vesicular follicles in their earliest stage. 6, 7, 8. More advanced follicles. 9. An almost mature follicle. 9'. Follicle from which the ovum has escaped. 10. Corpus luteum.

The surface of the ovary is covered by a layer of simple cuboidal cells which constitutes the germinal epithelium of Waldeyer.[1]

These cells are derived from the mesoderm during embryonic development and are closely related to the mesothelium of the peritoneum. The germinal epithelium gives the ovary a dull gray color as compared with the shining smoothness of the peritoneum; and the transition between the mesothelium of the peritoneum and the columnar cells which cover the ovary is usually marked by a line around the anterior border of the ovary.

The germinal epithelium is a misnomer and does not give rise to primary follicles. It is known to give rise to ovarian tumors.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

This article was originally based on an entry from a public domain edition of Gray's Anatomy. As such, some of the information contained within it may be outdated.


Personal tools
Namespaces
Variants
Actions
Navigation
Interaction
Toolbox
Print/export
Languages