Abstract
The vaginal epithelial changes document reproductive cycles and provide an index of the functional status of the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis. However, it is necessary to understand the vaginal cytology relationship. In our work we study the vaginal epithelium of intact and ovariectomized female mice. We analyzed young, middle aged and aged vaginal cytology and compared them with an ovariectomized group. The results show that female young intact mice manifest a four days estrous cycle phases: estrous, metaestrous, diestrous and proestrous. In contrast, female middle aged and aged mice showed the persistence of diestrous phase. Ovariectomized mice showed a similar cytology than the middle aged and aged intact ones. In conclusion, the vaginal cytology evaluates the reproductive axis integrity and reflects the circulating sexual hormones levels action and/or modification, which could produce transient changes in behavior.
