For more than a century, a tiny structure connected to the female reproductive system was treated as little more than a useless leftover.
The rete ovarii, first described in humans in 1870, eventually disappeared from modern anatomy textbooks. But new research suggests this small structure may actually communicate with the ovary, respond to hormones, and release proteins that could help regulate ovarian function.
The findings have sparked a fresh conversation about how science still has to learn about female anatomy.
