The ultrastructure of the accessory sex organs of the male rat

Summary The seminal vesicles and the coagulating gland of the rat were studied 2, 3, 5, 7 and 21 days after castration. The major changes within the seminal vesicles were primarily formation of whorls of the rough endoplasmic reticulum (RER), followed by a general atrophy with a numerical reduction of the RER-profiles, and with general simplification of the cytoplasm due to loss of the organelles. It was a gradually reduction of secretion granules, diminution of the Golgi apparatus, formation of pigment bodies and autophagic vacuoles. Lipid droplets were observed in the basal cytoplasm of the epithelial cells. In the coagulating gland, similar changes occurred within the Golgi area and the lysosome complex. On the other hand, cisternae of the basal endoplasmic reticulum tended to persist in many cells. The similarity in response strongly suggests that the pathogenetic mechanisms are similar in both organs, i.e. atrophy due to deprivation of the androgenic stimulus. The deprivation of androgen gave rise to an inflammatory-like process with infiltration of lymphocytes and macrophages. The increased number of macrophages may indicate that they contribute in some way to the involution of the prostate by removing the material in the autophagic vacuoles.