Depletion of ovarian follicles with age in chimpanzees: similarities to humans

Biol Reprod. 2007 Aug;77(2):247-51. doi: 10.1095/biolreprod.106.059634. Epub 2007 Apr 11.

Abstract

We retrieved ovarian sections taken from necropsies of 19 captive chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) aged 0-47 yr, counted the number of primordial follicles in each, and compared the rate of decline in numbers to declines previously documented in humans. The follicular depletion rate in this sample was indistinguishable from that shown across the same ages in classic human data sets. This result supports earlier suggestions that ovarian senescence occurs at the same ages in chimpanzees and humans, implying that the influence of declining ovarian function on other physiologic systems may be distinctively buffered in humans.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aging*
  • Animals
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Middle Aged
  • Ovarian Follicle / anatomy & histology*
  • Pan troglodytes / anatomy & histology*
  • Pan troglodytes / physiology*