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Epididymis Evolution From Reptiles To Mammals
The epididymis, which is a tube that connects a testicle to a vas deferens in the male reproductive system, evolved by retention of the mesonephric duct during regression and replacement of the mesonephros with the metanephric kidney. Similarly, during embryological involution of the paired mesonephric kidneys, each mesonephric duct is retained to become the epididymis, vas deferens, seminal vesicle and ejaculatory duct (Wolffian duct). In reptiles and birds both the testes and excurrent ducts (efferent ducts, epididymis, vas deferens) occur in an intra-abdominal location ( testicond). Primitive mammals, such as the monotremes (prototheria), also are testicond. Marsupial (metatheria) and placental ( eutheria) mammals exhibit differing degrees of testicular descent into an extra-abdominal scrotum.Bedford, H.M. (1978)Anatomical evidence for the epididymis as the prime mover in the evolution of the scrotum American Journal of Anatomy 152: 483-508. In scrotal mammals the epididymis is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Epididymis
The epididymis (; plural: epididymides or ) is a tube that connects a testicle to a vas deferens in the male reproductive system. It is a single, narrow, tightly-coiled tube in adult humans, in length. It serves as an interconnection between the multiple efferent ducts at the rear of a testicle (proximally), and the vas deferens (distally). Anatomy The epididymis is situated posterior and somewhat lateral to the testis. The epididymis is invested completely by the tunica vaginalis (which is continuous with the tunica vaginalis covering the testis). The epididymis can be divided into three main regions: * The head ( la, caput). The head of the epididymis receives spermatozoa via the efferent ducts of the mediastinium of the testis at the superior pole of the testis. The head is characterized histologically by a thick epithelium with long stereocilia (described below) and a little smooth muscle. It is involved in absorbing fluid to make the sperm more concentrated. The concentrat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vas Deferens
The vas deferens or ductus deferens is part of the male reproductive system of many vertebrates. The ducts transport sperm from the epididymis to the ejaculatory ducts in anticipation of ejaculation. The vas deferens is a partially coiled tube which exits the abdominal cavity through the inguinal canal. Etymology ''Vas deferens'' is Latin, meaning "carrying-away vessel"; the plural version is ''vasa deferentia''. ''Ductus deferens'' is also Latin, meaning "carrying-away duct"; the plural version is ''ducti deferentes''. Structure There are two vasa deferentia, connecting the left and right epididymis with the seminal vesicles to form the ejaculatory duct in order to move sperm. The (human) vas deferens measures 30–35 cm in length, and 2–3 mm in diameter. The vas deferens is continuous proximally with the tail of the epididymis. The vas deferens exhibits a tortuous, convoluted initial/proximal section (which measures 2–3 cm in length). Distally, it forms ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mesonephric Duct
The mesonephric duct (also known as the Wolffian duct, archinephric duct, Leydig's duct or nephric duct) is a paired Organ (anatomy), organ that forms during the embryonic development of humans and other mammals and gives rise to male Sex organ, reproductive organs. Structure The mesonephric duct connects the primitive kidney, the ''mesonephros'', to the cloaca. It also serves as the primordium for male urogenital structures including the epididymis, vas deferens, and seminal vesicles. Development In both male and female the mesonephric duct develops into the trigone of urinary bladder, a part of the bladder wall, but the sexes differentiate in other ways during development of the Development of the urinary system, urinary and Development of the reproductive system, reproductive organs. Male In a male, it develops into a system of connected organs between the efferent ducts of the testis and the prostate, namely the epididymis, the vas deferens, and the seminal vesicle. Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ejaculatory Duct
The ejaculatory ducts (''ductus ejaculatorii'') are paired structures in male anatomy. Each ejaculatory duct is formed by the union of the vas deferens with the duct of the seminal vesicle. They pass through the prostate, and open into the urethra above the seminal colliculus. During ejaculation, semen passes through the prostate gland, enters the urethra and exits the body via the urinary meatus. Function Ejaculation Ejaculation occurs in two stages, the emission stage and the expulsion stage.Rathus, S. A., Nevid, J. S., Fichner-Rathus, L., Herold, E. S. (2010). ''Human Sexuality in a World of Diversity''. Pearsons Education Canada, Pearson Canada Inc. Toronto, ON. The emission stage involves the workings of several structures of the ejaculatory duct; contractions of the prostate gland, the seminal vesicles, the bulbourethral gland and the vas deferens push fluids into the prostatic urethra. The semen is stored here until ejaculation occurs. Muscles at the base of the penis co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Testicond
In biology, testicondy in a species is the condition of having testicles situated within the abdomen as the normal anatomy of that species. Testicondy can be further classified into ''primary testicondy'' and ''secondary testicondy''. The testes of marine mammals such as sirenians and cetaceans are testicond. See also * Testicular descent The development of the gonads is part of the prenatal development of the reproductive system and ultimately forms the testes in males and the ovaries in females. The gonads initially develop from the mesothelial layer of the peritoneum. The ovar ... References Animal male reproductive system Testicle {{animal-anatomy-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Monotreme
Monotremes () are prototherian mammals of the order Monotremata. They are one of the three groups of living mammals, along with placentals (Eutheria), and marsupials (Metatheria). Monotremes are typified by structural differences in their brains, jaws, digestive tract, reproductive tract, and other body parts, compared to the more common mammalian types. In addition, they lay eggs rather than bearing live young, but, like all mammals, the female monotremes nurse their young with milk. Monotremes have been considered members of Australosphenida, a clade that contains extinct mammals from the Jurassic and Cretaceous of Madagascar, South America, and Australia, though this is disputed. The only surviving examples of monotremes are all indigenous to Australia and New Guinea, although there is evidence that they were once more widespread, as ''Monotrematum'' is known from the Paleocene of South America. The extant monotreme species are the platypus and four species of echidnas. The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marsupial
Marsupials are any members of the mammalian infraclass Marsupialia. All extant marsupials are endemic to Australasia, Wallacea and the Americas. A distinctive characteristic common to most of these species is that the young are carried in a pouch. Marsupials include opossums, Tasmanian devils, kangaroos, koalas, wombats, wallabies, bandicoots, and the extinct thylacine. Marsupials represent the clade originating from the last common ancestor of extant metatherians, the group containing all mammals more closely related to marsupials than to placentals. They give birth to relatively undeveloped young that often reside in a pouch located on their mothers' abdomen for a certain amount of time. Close to 70% of the 334 extant species occur on the Australian continent (the mainland, Tasmania, New Guinea and nearby islands). The remaining 30% are found in the Americas—primarily in South America, thirteen in Central America, and one species, the Virginia opossum, in North America, n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eutheria
Eutheria (; from Greek , 'good, right' and , 'beast'; ) is the clade consisting of all therian mammals that are more closely related to placentals than to marsupials. Eutherians are distinguished from noneutherians by various phenotypic traits of the feet, ankles, jaws and teeth. All extant eutherians lack epipubic bones, which are present in all other living mammals (marsupials and monotremes). This allows for expansion of the abdomen during pregnancy. The oldest-known eutherian species is '' Juramaia sinensis'', dated at from the early Late Jurassic ( Oxfordian) of China. Eutheria was named in 1872 by Theodore Gill; in 1880 Thomas Henry Huxley defined it to encompass a more broadly defined group than Placentalia. Characteristics Distinguishing features are: *an enlarged malleolus ("little hammer") at the bottom of the tibia, the larger of the two shin bones *the joint between the first metatarsal bone and the entocuneiform bone (the innermost of the three cuneiform ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bulbourethral Gland
The bulbourethral glands or Cowper's glands (named for English anatomist William Cowper) are two small exocrine glands in the reproductive system of many male mammals (of all domesticated animals, they are absent only in dogs). They are homologous to Bartholin's glands in females. The bulbouretheral glands are responsible for producing a pre-ejaculate fluid called Cowper's fluid (known colloquially as ''pre-ejaculate'' or ''pre-cum''), which is secreted during sexual arousal, neutralizing the acidity of the urethra in preparation for the passage of sperm cells. Location Bulbourethral glands are located posterior and lateral to the membranous portion of the urethra at the base of the penis, between the two layers of the fascia of the urogenital diaphragm, in the deep perineal pouch. They are enclosed by transverse fibers of the sphincter urethrae membranaceae muscle. Structure The bulbourethral glands are compound tubulo-alveolar glands, each approximately the size of a pe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Echidna
Echidnas (), sometimes known as spiny anteaters, are quill-covered monotremes (egg-laying mammals) belonging to the family Tachyglossidae . The four extant species of echidnas and the platypus are the only living mammals that lay eggs and the only surviving members of the order Monotremata. The diet of some species consists of ants and termites, but they are not closely related to the true anteaters of the Americas, which (along with sloths and armadillos) are xenarthrans. Echidnas live in Australia and New Guinea. Echidnas evolved between 20 and 50 million years ago, descending from a platypus-like monotreme. This ancestor was aquatic, but echidnas adapted to life on land. Etymology Echidnas are named after Echidna, a creature from Greek mythology who was half-woman, half-snake, as the animal was perceived to have qualities of both mammals and reptiles. An alternative explanation is a confusion with . Physical characteristics Echidnas are medium-sized, solitary mamm ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Evolution Of Descended Testes In Mammals
Mammals are the only animals in which the testes descend from their point of origin into a scrotum. Concurrently, mammals are the only class of vertebrates to evolve a prostate gland starting with prostate evolution in monotreme mammals. Testicular descent occurs to a variable degree in various mammals, ranging from virtually no change of position from the abdominal cavity (monotremes, elephants and hyraxes); through migration to the caudal end of the abdominal cavity (armadillos, whales and dolphins); migration just through the abdominal wall (hedgehogs, mole (animal), moles, Pinniped, seals); formation of a sub-anal swelling (pigs, rodents); to the development of pronounced scrota (primates, dogs, ruminants) in mammals.Setchell B.P. (1978). The Mammalian Testis. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, New York. Since descent of the testes into a scrotal pouch subjects the animal to enhanced risk of accidental damage and/or vulnerability from predators and rivals, presumably there must b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prostate Evolution In Monotreme Mammals
The monotremes (egg laying mammals) represent the order of extant mammals most distantly related to humans. The platypus (''Ornithorhynchus anatinus'') is indigenous to eastern Australia; the short-beaked echidna (''Tachyglossus aculeatus'') is indigenous to Australia and Papua New Guinea; whereas the long-beaked echidna (''Zaglossus bruijni'') is restricted to Papua New Guinea and Irian Jaya. Since monotremes exhibit characteristics common with both reptiles (e.g. presence of a cloaca) and therian mammals (e.g. mammary glands), they are of great interest for the study of mammalian evolution.Griffiths, M. (1968). Echidnas. Pergamon Press.Griffiths, M. (1978). The Biology of the Monotremes. Academic Press. Monotremes exhibit a combination of reptilian and mammalian characteristics Male monotremes are testicond (have intraabdominal testes) with the testes undergoing seasonal emergence during winter. The fully developed seminiferous tubules exhibit distinctly small stages of sper ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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