Female Reproduction 2 Flashcards
What are the 3 layers of the uterus?
Endometrium
Myometrium
Perimetrium
What makes up the stroma of the endometrium?
CT/type III collagen(reticular fibers)/fibroblasts
What are the two layers of the endometrium and how do they change?
Basal layer- lower layer and doesn’t change
Functional layer- upper layer and changes dramatically through the menstrual cycle
What arteries supply each layer of the endometrium?
Basal layer- straight arteries
functional layer- spiral arteries–in the absence of progesterone are occluded and cut off supply to the functional layer
What occurs during the menstrual phase of the endometrium?
Progesterone loss after luteolysis–constriction of the spiral arteries feeding the functional layer
Hypoxia causes cause menstrual flow
What occurs during the proliferative phase of the endometrium?
Estrogen released from growing ovarian follicles acts as mitogen—proliferation of stromal and uterine gland secretory cells
Spiral arteries regrow and sprout arterioles
What occurs during the secretory phase of the endometrium?
Progesterone from the corpus luteum stimulates secretory cell hypertrophy and secretory activity, also promotes vascular changes
What do secretory cells secrete during secretory phase and what role do these secretions play?
Glycogen and glycoprotein-rich products
-dilates the secretory phase uterine glands—primary nutrition source for the embryo prior to and during implantation
What causes maternal blood supply to the placenta during the secretory phase?
thin-walled vascular lacunae
What is Endometriosis?
Colonization of endometrial stromal and parenchyal cells outside the uterus
-endometrium sloughed during menses passes retrograde through the oviducts–into the peritoneal cavity
What are the consequences of endometriosis?
- Endometrial tissue remains hormone sensitive–growth then bleeding through menstrual cycle
- Pain/inflammation/adhesion formation
- Chocolate cyst
What is a chocolate cyst?
endometrial tissue trapped beneath the ovary tunica albuginea–large amount of bleeding and not just during menses
Result of endometriosis
What are the changes that occur to the myometrium during pregnancy?
Hyperplasia/hypertrophy of the smooth muscle
increased collagen production
Reversed postpartum by apoptosis/atrophy/collagen proteolysis
What is the perimetric continuous with?
broad ligament
What results from the occlusion of cervical gland ducts?
Nabothian cysts
-not neoplastic and usually resolve on their own
Where is a pap smear taken from?
cytological examination of transformation zone
How are infectious agents inhibited from growing in the vaginal canal?
Estrogen stimulates vaginal epithelial cells to accumulate glycogen
- after desquamation the glycogen is released and the resident lactobacilli bacteria ferment and create lactic acid
- lactic acid causes low pH env. inhibiting other infectious agents from growing
What is the parenchyma of the breast made up of?
intralobular ducts and secretory elements
Where to the breast lobes drain?
lactiferous duct
Where do breast lobules drain?
interlobular ducts–which drain into lactiferous duct
Where do lactiferous ducts drain?
lactiferous sinus near nipple- then empty at the nipple surface
What is interlobular stroma made up of and where does it lie?
dense irregular CT btwn lobules within a lobe
What is a terminal duct lobular unit? and what may originate here?
breast lobule + associated interlobular duct
most breast cancers originate from the TDLU
What occurs during the menstrual cycle in the inactive breast tissue?
duct lumens narrow
@ ovulation–secretory cells increase in height and produce some secretions
