formacion de epididimo

Acta Histochemica 114 (2012) 682–694

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Acta Histochemica
journal homepage: www.elsevier.de/acthis

Prenatal development of the bovine epididymis: Light microscopical,
glycohistochemical and immunohistochemical studies
Mohamed Alkafafy a,b,∗ , Fred Sinowatz c
a
b
c

Department of Cytology and Histology, Faculty of VeterinaryMedicine, Minufiya University, Sadat City Branch, Egypt
Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Science, Taif University, Al-Haweiah, Taif, Kingdom Saudi Arabia
Institute of Veterinary Anatomy II, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, Germany

a r t i c l e

i n f o

Article history:
Received 30 September 2011
Received in revised form 5 December 2011
Accepted 7 December 2011

Keywords:Bovine
Efferent ductules
Epididymis
Glycohistochemistry
Immunohistochemistry
Growth factors
Lectins

a b s t r a c t
Prenatal development of the epididymis was studied in bovine fetuses ranging from 10 to 90 cm
crown-rump length (CRL) (75–285 pcd). The studies aimed to apply both glycohistochemistry and
immunohistochemistry for the detection of the differentiation of the developing prenatalepididymis.
Both conventional histological and histochemical techniques were applied on paraffin sections of the epididymis from different fetal stages. Establishment of the urogenital junction between the extra-testicular
rete testis and the mesonephric duct, via the growing efferent ductules (ductuli efferentes) was first evident in fetuses with 10 cm CRL. At the fetal age of 110 pcd (24 cmCRL), the mesonephric duct began
to lengthen and coil forming three distinct regions (caput, corpus and cauda). In addition to the macroscopical modifications in the extra-testicular excurrent duct system, histological differentiation involved
both the tubular epithelial and the peritubular mesenchymal cells. The epithelium lining the efferent
ductules was differentiated into ciliated andnon-ciliated columnar cells. The simple epithelium of the
epididymal duct increased in height and developed stereocilia on the apical surface. Additionally, some
basal cells first appeared at 185 pcd (56 cm CRL), within the epithelium lining the cauda only. Lectin
histochemistry (WGA, PNA, GSA-I) showed early immunostaining in epithelium of the efferent ductules
and in peritubular mesenchymalstructures. Immunoreactivity for different proteins (S-100, fibroblast
growth factor-1 and factor-2, angiotensin converting enzyme, laminin, alpha-smooth muscle actin) was
evident, both in the epithelial and in the peritubular mesenchymal cells as early as at 75 pcd. On the basis
of our histochemical observations, we conclude that both glycohistochemistry and immunohistochemistry are useful tools todemonstrate that the differentiation in the peritubular structures and efferent
ductular epithelium begins earlier than other components.
© 2011 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Introduction
The mesonephros is the primitive kidney, which regresses in
a craniocaudal direction leaving the most caudal portion of the
mesonephric duct (MD) and the tubules joining it to perform a

Abbreviations:ABC, avidin biotin complex; ACE, angiotensin converting enzyme;
␣-SMA, alpha smooth muscle actin; BSA, bovine serum albumin; CRL, crown rump
length; DAB, diaminobenzidine; DBA, Dolichos biflorus agglutinin; FGFs, fibroblast
growth factors; FITC, fluorescein isothiocyanate; GHC, glycohistochemistry; GSA-I,
Griffonia simplicifolia I agglutinin; HPA, Helix pomatia agglutinin; IHC,immunohistochemistry; LCA, Lens culinaris agglutinin; LTA, Lotus tetragonolobus agglutinin;
MD, mesonephric duct; PBS, phosphate buffered saline; pcd, post-coitus day; PNA,
peanut agglutinin; PMC, peritubular muscle coat; PSA, Pisum sativum agglutinin;
SMCs, smooth muscle cells; UEA-I, Ulex europaeus-I agglutinin; WGA, wheat germ
agglutinin.
∗ Corresponding author at: Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of...