Quick Facts
The central luteal cavity is a remnant of the follicular antrum in the tertiary follicle.
Related parts of the anatomy
Structure and/or Key Feature(s)
Once ovulation has occurred and the secondary oocyte is released from the tertiary ovarian follicle, the follicular wall collapses into the follicular cavity. It contains remnants of the follicular fluid, serum, and blood cells. This cavity becomes invaded with connective tissue and blood vessels (Ross and Pawlina, 2006; Eroschenko, 2008). In some instances, the central luteal cavity is not always present.
Anatomical Relations
The central cavity of the corpus luteum is surrounded by the folded mass of granulosa lutein cells.
References
Dorland, W. (2011) Dorland's Illustrated Medical Dictionary. 32nd edn. Philadelphia, USA: Elsevier Saunders.
Eroschenko, V. P. (2008) DiFiore's Atlas of Histology with Functional Correlations. 11th edn.: Wolters Kluwer Health/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
Ross, M. H. and Pawlina, W. (2006) Histology: A text and atlas. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
