Abstract
The presence of polynuclear leucocytes in vaginal smears of the rat has been noted by Long and Evans, 1 who observed the presence of such cells during certain phases of the oestrous cycle, no quantitative measurements being made. The present report deals with polynuclear counts made from blood and from vaginal smears taken simultaneously from the same animal. All data were obtained from healthy rats kept under ordinary laboratory conditions.
Blood smears were prepared in the usual manner. The smears, upon drying, were fixed with methyl alcohol for one minute and were stained subsequently with Wright's blood stain. A few smears were stained with “Fadicit”, only Solution I being used. Either stain permits an easy identification of the polymorphonuclear neutrophiles and counts may be made without difficulty.
Vaginal smears, obtained by means of a wire loop and clean cotton, were stained with Delafield's hemotoxylin. In making a polynuclear count, cells showing fragmentation or obvious distortion were omitted, the count including only cells possessing a distinct cytoplasmic outline.
It will be noted from Table I, a representative cycle, that the blood count is decidedly left-handed as compared to that of normal man, and that the vaginal smear count, while also decidedly left-handed as compared to man, is also somewhat right-handed when compared to the animal's own blood count. The average weighted mean of a group of 35 blood polynuclear counts is 1.09, with a standard error of ±0.0016, while the average weighted mean of a group of 20 vaginal polynuclear counts is 1.69, with a standard error of ±0.039.
The polynuclear count of the rat is similar to the polynuclear counts obtained by Simpson 2 , 3 from the cow, the sheep and the horse.
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