An overlooked organ may help the ovary function

When an expansive curlicue of tissue sitting below the ovaries was discovered more than a century ago, it was dismissed as useless and erased from biology textbooks. Biologists now are taking a new look at the structure and its potential role.

The rete ovarii seems to communicate with the ovary by directing a flow of protein-packed fluids through its long, tubular structure into the organ, researchers report March 19 in eLife. The results come amid recent reports suggesting that…