title: Leukocyte infiltration and collagenolysis in cervical tissue from intrapartum sheep.
abstract: Sheep uterine cervices and cervical mucus were heavily infiltrated by neutrophils during labour, whereas samples of cervices obtained from non-pregnant controls had no infiltrate. The neutrophilic infiltrate of the sheep uterine cervix at term was not homogeneously distributed throughout the organ: luminal mucus contained more neutrophils than tissues which, in turn, displayed a differential distribution, the superficial subepithelial layer being more heavily infiltrated than the deeper submucous layers. A widespread collagenolysis was observed in the sheep uterine cervix at term. The homogeneous morphological aspect of degradation of collagen fibres throughout the whole cervical stroma contrasted with the above-mentioned differential distribution of neutrophils. On the basis of previous reports showing that collagenolysis follows the leukocytic invasion of human and rat cervices at term, a possible role for the neutrophilic infiltrate of the sheep uterine cervix is discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Physiology, Faculty of Biochemistry and Biological Sciences, Santa Fe, Argentina. eluque@fbcb.unl.edu.ar
authors.forename: E H
authors.initials: EH
authors.lastname: Luque
authors.forename: M M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Bassani
authors.forename: J G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Ramos
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Maffini
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Canal
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kass
authors.forename: E G
authors.initials: EG
authors.lastname: Caldini
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Ferreira Júnior
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Muñoz de Toro
authors.forename: G S
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Montes
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002465:Cell Movement / Q000502:physiology; D002584:Cervix Uteri / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D003094:Collagen / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D005260:Female; D007743:Labor, Obstetric / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology; D008854:Microscopy, Electron / Q000379:methods / Q000662:veterinary; D008859:Microscopy, Polarization; D009504:Neutrophils / Q000166:cytology* / Q000502:physiology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D011247:Pregnancy; D012756:Sheep / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D003094:Collagen