318 THE PHYSIOLOGY OF REPRODUCTION 



Knauer l has described experiments upon rabbits in which 

 he removed the ovaries from the normal position and grafted 

 them upon the mesometrium or between the fascia and the 

 muscle of the abdominal wall. He found that they could be 

 successfully implanted on both peritoneum and muscle, but 

 that some portion of the grafted ovary invariably died. The 



FIG. 67. Transverse section through rabbit's uterus after ovariotomy, 

 showing degenerative changes. (From Blair Bell, British Medical 

 Journal and Trans. Royal Society of Medicine. ) 



rest, however, remained functionally active, and continued to 

 produce ova which were capable of being fertilised. Knauer 

 states that whereas castration in female rabbits produced a 

 premature menopause, the uterus undergoing atrophy, this 

 result was prevented by a successfully transplanted ovary. 

 Knauer also experimented upon dogs and obtained similar 

 results. 



1 Knauer, " Die Ovarien-Transplantation, Experimentelle, Studie," Arch.f. 

 Gynak., vol. lx., 1900. 



