The Male Reproductive System. Flashcards
Define the crura?
Plural for crus.
Define erectile tissue?
Another name for the corpuscavernosum.
Define the male gonad?
Another term for the testicles.
Define spermatozoa?
Male gametes.
Define the spermatic fascia?
The fascia that surrounds the vaginal tunic.
What are the 7 organs/features that make up the male reproductive system?
Scrotum.
Testes.
Epididymus.
Deferent ducts.
Prostate gland.
Penis.
Urethra.
What is the scrotum?
A pouch of skin that is divided by a median septum into 2 cavities.
Where is the canine scrotum located?
Between the thighs and around 2 thirds of the distance from the anus to the preputial opening.
What kind of shape is the scrotum?
Spherical.
What is the first layer of the scrotum?
The integument which is pigmented and covered in fine hairs.
What is found within the integument?
It contains well developed sebaceous and tubular glands and it also contains a deep layer of smooth muscle.
What is the layer of smooth muscle in the integument known as?
The dartos.
What is the function of the dartos?
To contract and draw the testes closer to the body.
What is the male gonad or testes?
2 oval structures that are located in the scrotum.
What is the outmermost covering that covers the testes?
An outer membrane known as the visceral vaginal tunic.
What layer is found below the visceral vaginal tunic?
The tunica albuginea.
What is the tunica albuginea?
A dense, white fibrous capsule that makes up the surface of the testicles.
What is found within the testes?
Many coiled tubes called the seminiferous tubules.
What are the 2 types of cells that are found within the seminefrous tubules?
Spermatazoa.
Sertoli cells.
What are the spermatozoa that are found in the testes?
Male gametes which can be used to fertilise a female egg cell.
What are the sertoli cells that are found in the testes?
Specialised cells that support to the sperm cells.
Where will all of the seminferous tubules within the testes combine?
At a large collecting duct called the rete testis.
What is the structure of the rete testis?
A myriad of tubules that flow through the efferent ductules into a structure the head of the epididymus.
Is the epididymus inside or outside of the testes?
Technically it is outside of the testes as it lies above the tunica vaginalis.
What is the main function of the epididymus?
To connect the testes to the vas deferens.
What are the 3 areas of the epididymus?
Head.
Body.
Tail.
Where is the head of the epididymus located?
It is the area that is located closest to the efferent ductules.
Where will sperm enter the epididymus?
At the head.
Where is the body of the epididymus?
It lies between the head and tail.
What structure does the tail of the epididymus come into contact with?
The vas deferens.
Where is the tail of the epididymus located?
It is located at the caudal end of the testes.
Where in relation to the testes is the head of the epididymus located?
It is located at the cranial end of the testes.
Where do the ductus deferens arise from?
From the tail of the epididymus.
What are the ductus deferens responsible for?
For transporting sperm from the epididymis to the ejaculatory ducts.
What strucutre does the ductus deferens attach to?
It attaches to a structure called the mesorchium.
What helps the ductus deferens to attach to the mesorchium?
A structure mesoductus deferens.
What structures accompany the ductus deferens as it travels to the ejaculatory ducts?
The small deferent artery and vein.
What kind of gland is the prostate gland?
An exocrine gland.
What is the only accessory sex gland within the dog?
The prostate.
Where is the prostate gland located?
Near the neck of the bladder where it will envelop the urethra.
What is the inguinal canal?
A structure that lies between the abdominal muscles.
Will the inguinal canal be found exclusively in males?
No, it is found in both sexes.
What is the inguinal canal defined as?
As a short fissure that is filled with connective tissue.
What does the inguinal canal allow for in males?
It allows the vaginal tunic and spermatic cord to pass through.
What does the inguinal canal allow for in females?
It allows the round ligament to pass through.
Where is the opening of the inguinal canal located?
In the inner walls of the abdominal cavity at a location known as the deep inguinal ring.
Where does the spermatic cord enter the inguinal canal?
At the superficial ring and it will travel towards the deep ring.
Where does the inguinal canal extend towards from its opening at the deep inguinal ring?
Towards the superficial inguinal ring.
Where is the superficial inguiinal ring located?
On the superficial surface of the abdominal cavity.
Where is the superficial inguiinal ring located in relation to the deep ring?
It is more caudal than the deep inguinal ring.
What is the lateral boundary of the inguinal canal?
The aponeurosis of the external abdominal oblique.
What is the cranial boundary of the inguinal canal?
The caudal border of the internal abdominal oblique.
What is the medial boundary of the inguinal canal?
The superficial surface of the rectus abdominis.
What are the 2 main structures that pass through the inguinal canal in males?
The male vaginal tunic.
The spermatic cord.
What are the 2 main structures that pass through the inguinal canal in females?
The vaginal process.
The round ligament.
What are the 3 main structures that pass through the inguinal canal in both males and females?
The external pudendal artery.
The external pudendal vein.
The genitofemoral nerves.
What is the vaginal process?
A feature of the peritoneum that is present in both males and females.
In males, what is the vaginal process also known as?
As the vaginal tunic.
What is the function of the vaginal process in males?
To surround the testes and structures of the spermatic cord.
The spermatic cord is located inside what organ?
Inside the vaginal process/tunic.
What are the 2 layers that make up the vaginal process?
The parietal vaginal tunic.
The visceral vaginal tunic.
What is the parietal vaginal tunic?
The outer layer of the vaginal process.
What is covered by the parietal vaginal tunic?
It covers the spermatic cord from the deep inguinal ring to the bottom of the scrotum.
What is the visceral vaginal tunic?
The inner layer of the vaginal process.
What structures is the visceral vaginal tunic closely associated with?
It is closely fused to the testes and epididymis.
What 2 structures will the visceral vaginal tunic surround?
The ductus deferens.
The mesorchium.
What is the mesorchium?
A structure that contains the blood vessels and nerves that supply the testes.
The nerves and blood vessels that supply the testes will follow the path of what organ?
The path of the deferens duct.
The nerves and blood vessels that supply the testes and the deferens duct are surrounded by what strucuture?
They are all surrounded by a structure called the mesoductus deferens.
Are the nerves and blood vessels that supply the testes and the deferens duct considered to be part of the mesorchium?
Yes.
Even though the mesoductus deferens prevents them from being in contact with the mesorchium.
What are the 3 distinct parts that make up the spermatic cord?
The ductus deferens.
The testicular artery.
The testicular vein.
What structure covers the spermatic cord?
The vaginal tunic.
Where does the spermatic cord travel to and from?
It travels from the testes, through the inguinal canal.
The cremaster muscle is part of what organ within the male genitalia?
The cremaster muscle is part of the spermatic cord.
Where does the cremaster muscle arise from and insert into?
From the internal abdominal oblique and inserts onto the spermatic fascia and the parietal vaginal tunic.
What is the main function of the cremaster muscle?
To regulate the temperature of the testes by pulling the testes closer to the body or allowing them to be further away from the body.
Is the cremaster muscle part of the spermatic cord?
No, it only accompanies the spermatic cord.
In the male reproductive system, are the testicular artery, testicular vein, lymph vessels and nerves closely associated with each other?
Yes.
What shape is the testicular artery?
It is torturous, meaning it winds around alot.
What is woven around the testicular artery?
The nerves and the veinous plexus.
What does the veinous plexus that surrounds the testicular artery consist of?
All of the veins that take blood away from the testes.
What is the veinous plexous also known as?
As the papinform plexus.
What is the function of the papinform plexus?
It helps to insulate the artery and maintain a constant temperature in the testes.
What main artery is the testicular artery a part of?
The aorta.
What main vein is the testicular vein a part of?
The vein cava.
What are the 4 paired muscles that are found in the penis?
The retractor penis.
The ischiocavernosus muscles.
The bulbospongiosus muscles.
The ischiourethralis muscle.
Where are the ischiocavernosus muscles found within the penis?
They cover the crura of the penis which is a section that is also known as the root of the penis.
Where does the structure of the penis begin?
At the root of the penis.
Where is the root of the penis located?
At the back of the ischium.
Where does the ischiocaernosus muscle attach to?
To the ischiatic tuberosity.
Which muscle marks the root of the penis?
The ischiocaernosus muscle.
What part of the penis do the bulbospongiosus muscles cover?
The superficial surface of the bulb of the penis.
What are the 3 defined areas of the penis?
The root.
The body.
The glans.
What are the 2 areas that the glans penis is subdivided into?
The bulbus glandis.
The pars longa glandis.
What is the root of the penis composed of?
2 crura which are individually known as a crus.
What are the characteristics of each crus that makes up the root of the penis?
Each crus is filled with blood and contains the corpuscavernosum.
What is the corpuscavernosum?
The main tissue that makes up the penis and it extends distally into the body or shaft of the penis.
What is the corpuscavernosum surrounded by?
A capsule known as the tunica albigunea.
Other than on the corpuscavernosum, what else is surrounded by the tunica albigunea?
The testes.
What is the bulb of the penis?
A partially bilobed sac that is found between the 2 crura and it is continuous with the corpus spongiosum.
What feature within the penis is also surrounded by the bulb of the penis?
The urethra.
What happens to the 2 crura at the body of the penis?
The 2 crura join up to each other.
Where is the body of the penis located?
Distal to the bulb.
What is the body of the penis surrounded by?
The corpus spongiosum which is continuous with the bulbus penis.
What strucutre is surrounded by the body of the penis?
The urethra which continues through the glans region to the point where it terminates.
What is the glans penis divided into?
Into the bulbus glandis and the par long glanda.
What is the bulbus glandis?
It is proximal to the par longa glanda and it is a ringlike structure.
What is the par longa glanda?
It is distal to the bulbus glandis and it forms the apex of the penis.
What is the os penis?
A long bone that lies almost entirely within the glans penis.
What is the os penis formed from?
From the ossification of the fused distal ends of the corpora cavernosa.
What is the os penis surrouned by?
By corpus spongiosum which proceeds all the way down the length of the penis.
