74 



BENJAMIN H. WILLIER 



Morphologically, the rete is a cord of densely arranged con- 

 nective-tissue fibers in which is a network of anastomosing chan- 

 nels, the rete tubules. These tubules are lined with a single 

 layer of columnar epithelial cells having elongated nuclei. They 

 resemble the rete testis tubules of the normal testis, with the 



r 



Fig. 3 Longitudinal section through an ovary of a 56-cm. female bos foetus, 

 Bos 8. c, cortex; mc, medullary cord; r, rete enters anterior end and penetrates 

 to posterior end of medullary-cord region; ta, tunica primary albuginea between 

 medullary-cord region and cortex. X 21. 



difference, however, that the epithelial cells of the free-martin 

 tubules are much less regular in arrangement. 



The constancy of the eccentric position of the rete region will 

 be understood from the consideration of the normal develop- 

 ment of this region in the ovary and the testis. The rete ovarii 

 and the rete testis both originate from a region anterior to the 

 sex gland, and penetrate into the anterior end of the gonad, the 

 point of entrance in each case being the hilum. The rete ovarii 



