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2 - Developing follicle 3 - Mature follicle 4 - Ovulation 5 - Corpus luteum 6 - Deterioration of corpus luteum. In biology, folliculogenesis is the maturation of the ovarian follicle, a densely packed shell of somatic cells that contains an immature oocyte.
The follicular phase, also known as the preovulatory phase or proliferative phase, [1] is the phase of the estrous cycle (or, in primates [2] for example, the menstrual cycle) during which follicles in the ovary mature from primary follicle to a fully mature Graafian follicle.
An ovarian follicle is a roughly spheroid cellular aggregation set found in the ovaries.It secretes hormones that influence stages of the menstrual cycle.In humans, women have approximately 200,000 to 300,000 follicles at the time of puberty, [1] [2] each with the potential to release an egg cell (ovum) at ovulation for fertilization. [3]
Ovarian follicle activation can be defined as primordial follicles in the ovary moving from a quiescent (inactive) to a growing phase. The primordial follicle in the ovary is what makes up the “pool” of follicles that will be induced to enter growth and developmental changes that change them into pre-ovulatory follicles, ready to be released during ovulation.
The follicular phase (or proliferative phase) is the phase of the menstrual cycle during which the ovarian follicles mature. The follicular phase lasts from the beginning of menstruation to the start of ovulation. [12] [13] For ovulation to be successful, the ovum must be supported by the corona radiata and cumulus oophorous granulosa cells. [14]
The cells that comprise the follicle, known as granulosa cells, are connected to each other by proteins known as gap junctions, that allow small molecules to pass between the cells. The granulosa cells produce a small molecule, cyclic GMP , that diffuses into the oocyte through the gap junctions.
A set of follicles starts to develop near the end of proestrus and grows at a nearly constant rate until the beginning of the subsequent estrus when the growth rates accelerate eightfold. Ovulation occurs about 109 hours after the start of follicle growth. Estrogen peaks at about 11 am on the day of proestrus.
Sawyer et al. hypothesized that in sheep most of the granulosa cells develop from cells of the mesothelium (i.e., epithelial cells from the presumptive surface epithelium of the ovary). [5] In 2013, it was proposed that both granulosa cells and the ovarian surface epithelial cells are instead derived from a precursor cell called gonadal-ridge ...