Origin and differentiation of the endocrine cells of the ovary.
A large proportion of the somatic cells of the developing ovaries of mouse, human and rabbit stems from the mesonephric tissue. In the immature mouse ovary and in the 19-day-old fetal rabbit ovary, the first steroid-producing cells differentiate among the mesonephric-derived cells within the ovary. In the fetal human ovary, the first steroid-producing cells arise in the inner part of the cortex and differentiate concomitantly with the formation of small follicles. The origin of the early steroid-producing cells in the human ovary is still uncertain. During early ovarian development, formation and further differentiation of the steroid-producing interstitial cells seem to continue only in areas devoid of free viable germ cells.
D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D005314:Embryonic and Fetal Development; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007124:Immunoenzyme Techniques; D008650:Mesonephros / Q000648:ultrastructure; D051379:Mice; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D009865:Oocytes / Q000648:ultrastructure; D010053:Ovary / Q000166:cytology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D011817:Rabbits