Ovum transport in the rat oviductal ampulla in the absence of muscle contractility.
Ovum transport in mammalian oviducts involves two main effectors: ciliary motility and muscle contractility. To study the relative contribution of cilia to ovum transport in the rat, we blocked smooth muscle activity with isoproterenol, a beta-adrenergic agonist, and measured transport rates of surrogate ova in situ. Transport rates before isoproterenol administration were 0.04 mm/s in the cephalic ampulla and 0.03 mm/s in the caudal ampulla; rates were unchanged after administration of isoproterenol. To determine if isoproterenol affected ciliary activity, we measured ciliary beat frequency with laser-scattering spectroscopy over the effective isoproterenol dosage. Isoproterenol did not cause a significant change in ciliary beat frequency. Our results show that in the rat oviductal ampulla, ciliary motion is capable of transporting ova in the absence of muscle contractility.
Center for Bioengineering, University of Washington, Seattle 98195.
S A
SA
Halbert
D R
DR
Becker
S E
SE
Szal
D000818:Animals; D002923:Cilia / Q000187:drug effects; D005187:Fallopian Tubes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D007545:Isoproterenol / Q000494:pharmacology; D009119:Muscle Contraction / Q000187:drug effects; D009130:Muscle, Smooth / Q000187:drug effects; D010066:Ovum Transport / Q000187:drug effects; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains
D007545:Isoproterenol