Motility of the oviduct and uterus of the cow during the oestrous cycle.

Recordings of electrical activity of the oviduct and uterus were obtained during three oestrous cycles in cows fitted with an extra-cellular multi-electrode assembly. The stages of the cycle were identified by the appearance of the cervico-vaginal secretions and changes in the peripheral plasma level of progesterone were determined by radioimmunoassay. A gradual transition from local non-propagating electrical activity to propagating electrical activity with increase in the duration of contractions and then of their amplitude occurred 48 hr before the onset of oestrus. The transition coincided with a rapid decrease in progesterone level from 5 to 10 ng/ml to less than 0-1 to 0-4 ng/ml. This phenomenon was recorded from all uterine electrode sites, but was most marked at the uterotubal junction. Two days before oestrus, trains of potentials and bursts of activity became progressively grouped, apparently randomly, into prolonged phases in the distal portion of the oviduct and over the entire myometrium. During oestrus, the phases of activity became synchronized at these sites and both their amplitude and frequency reached a maximum. The strength but not the frequency of the phases diminished progressively 3 days after oestrus, followed by relative inactivity. The last remaining zone of activity was the uterotubal junction. During oestrus, the activities of the oviduct and the uterus were modified by oxytocin and adrenaline, the effect of the former being more marked on the uterus and that of the latter on the oviduct.