A central component of the female mink reproductive system, as well as that of most other mammals, the uterus is a pear-shaped muscular organ that typically lies in the pelvis. During pregnancy, the uterus, also known as the womb, expands greatly, filling a much larger space in the body as the fetus it holds grows and develops. The uterus is commonly considered to be divided into four basic regions, the uppermost of which is the broad area known as the fundus. Connected to the fundus are the fallopian tubes that serve as conduits for eggs from the ovaries to the uterus. The main body of the uterus lies beneath the fundus and tapers into a narrower, neck-like section called the isthmus. The cervix is the final region of the uterus, extending downward from the isthmus and opening into the vagina that is positioned below it.

The culture of mink endometrial (GMMe) cells presented in the digital image above was labeled for mitochondria and the cytoskeletal filamentous actin network with MitoTracker Red CMXRos and Alexa Fluor 488 conjugated to phalloidin, respectively. In addition, cell nuclei were targeted with the blue fluorescent nucleic acid stain, DAPI, which preferentially stains dsDNA. Images were recorded in grayscale with a QImaging Retiga Fast-EXi camera system coupled to an Olympus BX-51 microscope equipped with bandpass emission fluorescence filter optical blocks provided by Omega Optical. During the processing stage, individual image channels were pseudocolored with RGB values corresponding to each of the fluorophore emission spectral profiles.