Pregnancy-associated changes in morphological and histochemical characteristics of the uterine cervix of the native Korean cattle

한우 자궁경부의 임신경과에 따른 형태학적 및 조직화학적 연구

This study was performed to investigate the effect of gestation on the histological and histochemical changes of the uterine cervix of the native Korean cattle. A total of 110 cows obtained from the Chonhuk abattoir were divided into six groups. The 1st group was of 9 non-pregnant cows and 101 singleton pregnant cows were grouped into 5 groups from pregnant I to pregnant V according to gestation periods by means of crown rump length measures. For light microscopy the tissues were fixed in 10% neutral formalin and processed routinely for paraffin sections The $6{\mu}m$ sections were taken and stained with H-E, Alcian blue pH 1.0, Alcian blue pH 2.5, Alcian blue pH 2.5/PAS, PAS reaction, toluidin blue, and trichrome. The results obtained were as follows: 1. The cervical lengths and widths were increased in relation to advancing gestation. 2. The cervical folds of the pregnant groups were increased and complicated with many branches, and the cervical muscosal epithelia were increased in according to advancing gestation. 3. As advancing gestation, the tunics muscularis of cervix was increased following moderate distribution of fibroblast and vascularity, meanwhile decreased mast cells were found. 4. The cervical mucosubstance was composed of mixed mucopolysaccharides; the acid mucus was increased from the early pregnant state but the neutral mucus was found after pregnant IV, and the mucus was stained deeply in each staining in the fold cavity in according to gestation state.