Rate and course of atresia during follicular development in the adult cyclic rat.

Ovarian follicles (greater than or equal to 100 X 10(5) microns 3 or a mean diameter of greater than or equal to 275 microns) in adult rats were classified as non-atretic and atretic during the oestrous cycle and recorded in 5 volume classes. The atretic follicles were also categorized in several stages according to the progress of atresia. The degeneration of the entire granulosa wall until the induced changes in the oocyte took at least 24 h. Another 24 h elapsed before the oocyte became denuded. Therefore the % of atretic follicles, i.e. follicles in all stages of atresia, could not be used as indicator for the rate of atresia. The atretic portion in the follicle population greater than or equal to 100 X 10(5) microns 3 increased from early dioestrus 1 to early dioestrus 3, reached a plateau during dioestrus 3 and pro-oestrus, and declined at late oestrus to the level of early dioestrus 1. The sudden decrease in number of atretic follicles after late pro-oestrus was caused by the discard of many atretic follicles in the advanced stages due to various deformities as revealed by histological observation. By using the % of atretic follicles in the earliest stage as indicator of atretic rate, two waves of atresia were found affecting the population of antral follicles during their growth, the first at dioestrus 1 amounting to 15-20% and then at dioestrus 3, affecting 35% of the population. The present study also shows the extension of atresia in the various volume classes of follicles during the oestrous cycle. A pool of approximately 7 follicles in the smallest volume class was maintained after ovulation, grew further in the next cycle with a new cohort of 20 follicles, and seemed to provide the required number of follicles destined to ovulate. This suggests that the follicles that ovulate were already present at an antral stage in the preceding cycle and needed two cycles for their growth to ovulation.