A histochemical investigation of the distribution of adrenergic and cholinergic nerves in the human male genital organs.

Abstract

A histochemical studies clarified the peripheral distribution of adrenergic and cholinergic nerves in the human male genital organs. In the human testis, there was a minimal distribu-tion of catecholamine fluorescent fibers and acetylcholinesterase positive fibers around the blood vessels and in the interstitium. In the epididymis and the vas deferens, both nerve fibers were abundant in the muscle layer and interstitium. However, no difference in the distribution of these nerve fibers was noted accord-ing to the anatomical site of these organs. In the prostate, acetylcholinesterase positive fibers were abundant; but catecholamine fluorescent fibers were relatively few, and found in the interstitium and the muscle layer. These two types of nerve fibers were not found in the epithelial cell layer of the organs.