title: Postovulatory follicle: a model for experimental studies of programmed cell death or apoptosis in teleosts.
abstract: This is the first evidence of programmed cell death, or apoptosis, occurring in the postovulatory follicle (POF) of teleost fish. Females of Astyanax bimaculatus lacustris were submitted to induced ovulation through injecting pituitary extract. Ultrastructural analyses of POFs at time intervals varying from zero to four days postspawning showed several characteristic events of the apoptosis. Typical apoptotic figures, such as nucleus with chromatin condensation underlying the nuclear envelope in a crescent pattern and apoptotic bodies at different stages of formation and reabsorption, were observed in the follicular cells a few days after the onset of the postovulatory period. The results indicated that apoptosis is the major mechanism responsible for the elimination of the follicular cells in the POFs of A. bimaculatus lacustris during ovarian recovery postspawning. It is suggested that POFs might be used as an experimental model in dynamic studies involving cell death in teleosts.
authors.affiliation: Department of Morphology, Institute of Biological Sciences, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil.
authors.forename: C D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Drummond
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Bazzoli
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rizzo
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sato
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000502:physiology*; D002347:Carps; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000502:physiology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D005260:Female; D005399:Fishes / Q000502:physiology*; D008954:Models, Biological; D015388:Organelles / Q000648:ultrastructure; D006080:Ovarian Follicle / Q000502:physiology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D010060:Ovulation / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D010062:Ovulation Induction; D010907:Pituitary Hormones / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D010907:Pituitary Hormones