The Potential Relevance of Cytokines to Ovarian Physiology: The Emerging Role of Resident Ovarian Cells of the White Blood Cell Series

Abstract

ELUCIDATING the secrets of intraovarian intercellular communication constitutes a central area of investigation. Whereas most attention has been directed thus far at the somatic cellular components of the ovary, the potential role(s) and relative importance of resident ovarian white blood cell types have received relatively limited attention. Efforts are currently underway to reconcile traditional ovarian physiology with observations relevant to intraovarian components of the white blood cell series. In so doing, the already formidable task of analyzing intraovarian interactions stands to be further complicated. In many ways, the paradigms explored at the level of the ovary have broad implications for endocrinology, in general, in that similar phenomena are likely to be operational in other highly regulated systems. Although the present scientific literature may only provide limited information as it pertains to resident ovarian white blood cell types, the mere implications of these relatively new developments appear worthy of further discussion.