The penile raphe is a visible line or ridge of tissue that runs on the

ventral Standard anatomical terms of location are used to unambiguously describe the anatomy of animals, including humans. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek language, Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. Th ...

side of the

human penis The human penis is an external male intromittent organ that additionally serves as the urinary duct. The main parts are the root (radix); the body (corpus); and the epithelium of the penis including the shaft skin and the foreskin (prepuce) co ...

beginning from the base of the shaft and ending in the

prepuce Prepuce , or as an adjective, preputial , refers to two homologous structures of male and female genitals: *Clitoral hood, skin surrounding and protecting the head of the clitoris *Foreskin, skin surrounding and protecting the head of the penis in ...

. The line is typically darker than the rest of the shaft skin, even though its shape and

pigmentation A pigment is a colored material that is completely or nearly insoluble in water. In contrast, dyes are typically soluble, at least at some stage in their use. Generally dyes are often organic compounds whereas pigments are often inorganic compo ...

may vary among males. The penile raphe is part of a broader line in the

male reproductive organs The male reproductive system consists of a number of sex organs that play a role in the process of human reproduction. These organs are located on the outside of the body and within the pelvis. The main male sex organs are the penis and the tes ...

, that runs from the

anus The anus (Latin, 'ring' or 'circle') is an opening at the opposite end of an animal's digestive tract from the mouth. Its function is to control the expulsion of feces, the residual semi-solid waste that remains after food digestion, which, d ...

through the

perineum The perineum in humans is the space between the anus and scrotum in the male, or between the anus and the vulva in the female. The perineum is the region of the body between the pubic symphysis (pubic arch) and the coccyx (tail bone), includi ...

(

perineal raphe The perineal raphe is a visible line or ridge of tissue on the body that extends from the anus through the perineum to scrotum (male) or labia majora (female). It is found in both males and females, arises from the fusion of the urogenital folds, ...

) and continues to the

scrotum The scrotum or scrotal sac is an anatomical male reproductive structure located at the base of the penis that consists of a suspended dual-chambered sac of skin and smooth muscle. It is present in most terrestrial male mammals. The scrotum cont ...

and penis, collectively referred to as median raphe. The line consists of a subcutaneous

fibrous Fiber or fibre (from la, fibra, links=no) is a #Natural fibers, natural or Fiber#Artificial fibers, artificial substance that is significantly longer than it is wide. Fibers are often used in the manufacture of other materials. The stronge ...

plate, which may vary in prominence and thickness in various areas of the genitals. In the scrotum, the line is located over the internal

scrotal septum The septum of the scrotum is a vertical layer of fibrous tissue that divides the two compartments of the scrotum. It consists of flexible connective tissue. Its structure extends to the skin surface of the scrotum as the scrotal raphe. It is an ...

that divides the two sides of the sac and is densely occupied by

nerve fibers A nerve is an enclosed, cable-like bundle of nerve fibers (called axons) in the peripheral nervous system. A nerve transmits electrical impulses. It is the basic unit of the peripheral nervous system. A nerve provides a common pathway for the e ...

. The raphe may become more prominent and darker when the scrotal sac tightens due to contractions. Behind the scrotum it continues as the perineal raphe. The raphe results as a manifestation of the fusion of the labioscrotal,

urogenital The genitourinary system, or urogenital system, are the organs of the reproductive system and the urinary system. These are grouped together because of their proximity to each other, their common embryological origin and the use of common pathwa ...

and preputial folds during the embryonic development of the male fetus.

References

{{Portal bar, Anatomy Human male reproductive system Human penis Human penis anatomy

See also

References