Persistent Vaginal Cornification in Mice

Persistent vaginal cornification induced in A/Crgl mice by brief postnatal treatment with estrogen is not prevented by later ovariectomy, adrenalectomy, or hypophysectomy. Transplantation of the persistently cornified vaginae into ovariectomized normal mice or into ovariectomized persistently estrous mice also does not eliminate cornification in the majority of transplants. Administration of "antiestrogenic" steroids temporarily alters the vaginal picture in some but not all of these mice. The vaginal epithelium of the persistently estrous mouse appears to represent an altered cell population which does not require estrogen for its constant keratinization.