The development of teratomas from intratesticular grafts of tubal mouse eggs

Abstract

Grafts of cleaving tubal ova from non-inbred mice to ectopic sites usually result in growths composed of extra-embryonic but not embryonic tissues (Fawcett, Wisloki & Waldo, 1947; Fawcett, 1950; Jones, 1951; Whitten 1958; Kirby, 1960, 1962a; Billington, 1965; and others). Runner (1947) grafted tubal mouse ova to the anterior chamber of the eye and one developed the three primary germ layers and then regressed, probably because the host and donor were histo-incompatible. This is the only report of an ectopically grafted pre-uterine egg that developed intra-embryonic derivatives. Kirby (1962b, 1965) grafted oviducal segmenting mouse eggs to the kidney and obtained only tropho-blast and extra-embryonic membranes. He concluded that a ‘uterine factor’ is necessary for the development of intra-embryonic structures from mouse eggs. Kirby (1965) and Billington (1965) grafted moruiae and blastocysts to the testis, and the morulae never gave rise to embryonic shield derivatives.