SHORT ADRENERGIC NEURONS AND CATECHOLAMINE-CONTAINING CELLS IN VAS DEFERENS AND ACCESSORY MALE GENITAL GLANDS OF DIFFERENT MAMMALS.

Abstract

1. The adrenergic innervation and catecholamine-containing cells in the internal accessory male genital organs of the guinea-pig, rat, rabbit, cat, dog and macaque has been studied with a fluorescence microscopic method for the cellular localization of catecholamines and 5-hydroxytryptamine. 2. The vas deferens and most of the accessory genital glands have a very dense supply of adrenergic terminals, which is resistant to hypogastric denervation as well as to lumbosacral sympathectomy. The adrenergic innervation is restricted to the smooth muscle coats (and the blood vessels) of the organs. Secretory cells do not seem to have an adrenergic innervation. A remarkable species difference was found in the dog: The circular muscle layer of the vas deferens contain only a sparse number of adrenergic nerve fibers but a rich network of non-adrenergic fibers. 3. The adrenergic fibers of the internal accessory genital organs originates from adrenergic cell bodies located close to or within the walls of these organs. Some of these cells are surrounded by adrenergic terminals, probably belonging to similar short neurons. 4. In the nervous structures adjacent to the internal accessory male genital glands as well as inside some of these organs, small polymorph cells with short processes containing high amounts of catecholamines are present. Many of these cells seem to contain adrenaline. 5. In some of the genital glands the occurrence of “enterochromaffin” cells has been confirmed.