[Effect of rotenone on rabbit ovulation and histochemical activities of cytochrome oxidase and 3 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase of the follicle].

Various doses of rotenone, an inhibitor of respiratory chain, were administered to mature female rabbits concomitantly with an ovulatory dose of hCG. The effect of rotenone on ovulation was studied by counting the ovulated stigma under a dissecting microscope. Histochemical studies on the activities of 3 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3 beta-HSD) and cytochrome oxidase (CYO) in follicles at various intervals after hCG-rotenone injections were also performed to investigate the role of mitochondrial oxidation in the ovulatory process. Rotenone inhibited the hCG-induced ovulation in a dose respondent manner and reduced the sudden hCG-induced increase in the histochemical activities of 3 beta-HSD and CYO of granulosa cells. It is suggested that the activation of mitochondrial oxidation in the ovulating follicle is mandatory for ovulation and the induction of steroidogenic enzymes in granulosa cells.