INTRODUCTION 3 



selves have received relatively little attention. The study 

 of the hormonal control of ovarian function has centered 

 upon the relation of hormone activity to the development of 

 follicle and corpus luteum. The ovary has been largely 

 considered as a sort of diphasic machine geared for hormone 

 production by certain specialized follicle components. Its 

 primary function as a producer of gametes has been rela- 

 tively neglected. The endocrine control of the proliferative, 

 secretory and contractile activities of the oviducts them- 

 selves is known in detail, and it is tacitly recognized that 

 all these activities have as their end and aim the nutrition 

 and protection of the developing egg. Yet the exact nature 

 of the dependence of the o\aim upon these activities is still 

 problematical. We are now provided with the sort of 

 knowledge that should certainly make profitable in vivo 

 experimentation with eggs. 



Brachet (1912, 1913) did indeed take advantage of the 

 development of a tissue culture technique in order to in- 

 vestigate a specific stage of development in rabbit ova. 

 But neither the availability of the technique nor Brachet 's 

 suggestive discourse led to any acti\^e investigation until. 

 1929 when Lewis and Gregory published their account of 

 the cinematography of rabbit ova developing in culture. 

 Since then a number of workers associated with Lewis 

 (Gregory, 1930; Squier, 1932; Lewis and Hartman, 1933; 

 Lewis and Wright, 1935) have conducted a fairly intensive 

 examination of living ova, chiefly with the object of cul- 

 turing fertilized eggs. In addition to these investigations 

 and similar work undertaken by Nicholas and his coworkers 

 (Nicholas and Rudnick, 1933, 1934; Defrise, 1933), the 

 physiological properties of developing ova have been ex- 

 amined from quite different angles. So there exists a meas- 

 urable body of work of recent origin which is properly 

 experimental. Wherever possible the factual data of this 

 work have been presented in the hope that these, speaking 

 for themselves, may stand side by side with any interpreta- 

 tion herein presented. 



