Role of the Hypogastric Nerves in Seminal Emission in the Rabbit

Hodson, Norma

doi:10.1530/jrf.0.0070113

Cited by 34 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…Compared to the marked depletions seen in the cauda epididymidis (reported in our companion paper [6]), the data indicate that the gonads and accessory sex organs are the principal sites of action of guanethidine within the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis. The weights of both the seminal vesicles/coagulating glands and epididymis were markedly increased in the guanethidine-treated and IMGablated groups, presumably due to excretory failure and retention of sperm, respectively [1,4,25,27,29]. Indeed, there were significant increases in the number of sperm and the transit time in the cauda epididymidis of all denervated rats.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 91%

Fertility of Rat Epididymal Sperm after Chemically and Surgically Induced Sympathectomy1

Kempinas

Suarez

Roberts

et al. 1998

Biology of Reproduction

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Guanethidine, a chemical that selectively blocks sympathetic noradrenergic neurons, was used to investigate the role of sympathetic innervation in the fertility of rat epididymal sperm, using both natural mating and in utero insemination protocols. This animal model correlates, at least in part, with spinal cord injury (SCI) in men. Adult male rats were treated daily by i.p. injections, for 21 or 42 days, with 0 or 6.25 mg/kg guanethidine. To compare the effects of guanethidine-induced sympathectomy with those following surgically induced sympathectomy, the inferior mesenteric ganglion and the proximal hypogastric nerves were removed in another group of rats. Both chemically and surgically induced sympathectomy increased the weight of the epididymis and seminal vesicles/coagulating glands as well as the number and the transit time of cauda epididymal sperm. Neither serum testosterone levels nor LH was affected by treatment with guanethidine. Using natural mating, no litters were produced by guanethidine-treated rats. Chemically denervated rats failed to produce copulatory plugs or ejaculate into the uterus. However, distal cauda epididymal sperm from chemically or surgically denervated rats displayed normal fertilization ability (80%) using in utero inseminations. In addition, the sperm of denervated rats did not show abnormal sperm chromatin structure using an assay that detects DNA damage. We conclude that sympathectomy delays the transit of sperm through the cauda epididymidis and produces ejaculatory dysfunction but does not compromise sperm quality in the distal cauda epididymidis. Moreover, these data provide compelling evidence that there is no association between the prolonged transit time of sperm within the epididymis, i.e., pre-ejaculatory sperm aging, and the fertility of those sperm, which has important implications for artificial insemination using sperm from men with SCI.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 91%

Fertility of Rat Epididymal Sperm after Chemically and Surgically Induced Sympathectomy1

Kempinas

Suarez

Roberts

et al. 1998

Biology of Reproduction

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“…It has been suggested that in addition to regulating seminal emission, adrenergic neurotransmitters may be involved in the control of epididymal sperm transit [2,5,21,33], thus explaining the increased concentration of spermatozoa observed in denervated animals. This is consistent with the loss of innervation in this region, accounting for decreased contractility of the duct, which delayed sperm transit, even after 1 wk of treatment.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rat Epididymal Sperm Quantity, Quality, and Transit Time after Guanethidine-Induced Sympathectomy1

Kempinas

Suarez

Roberts

et al. 1998

Biology of Reproduction

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Guanethidine, a chemical that selectively abolishes peripheral noradrenergic nerves, was used to investigate the role of sympathetic innervation in the maintenance of epididymal sperm quantity and quality. Four groups of 10 adult male rats each were treated daily for 21 days, by i.p. injections, with either 0 (saline vehicle), 6.25, 12.5, or 25 mg/kg guanethidine. Norepinephrine content was reduced to undetectable levels in the cauda epididymidis in all guanethidine groups after 3 wk of treatment and was reduced to 7.4% of the control values after 1 wk of 6.25 mg/kg treatment. While body weight gain was significantly decreased at 12.5 and 25 mg/kg compared to that in controls, there was a significant increase in the weights of the seminal vesicles/coagulating glands in all treated groups. The number of homogenization-resistant spermatids per testis and the daily sperm production per testis remained unchanged. The weight of the epididymis was significantly increased at 6.25 and 12.5 mg/kg. Moreover, the number of cauda epididymal sperm and the transit time were increased significantly at 6.25 mg/kg (10.2 days) compared to values in the control cauda (6.3 days). Neither serum testosterone levels nor LH was affected in a dosage-related manner. There were no effects of guanethidine treatment on cauda epididymal sperm motility or morphology. A quantitative analysis of detergent-extracted cauda epididymal sperm proteins by SDS-PAGE revealed no differences, but there were diminutions in seven proteins in homogenates of caput/corpus tissue. Histologic analysis of testis and epididymis sections revealed no differences between control and denervated animals. In a subsequent experiment the lowest effective dosage (6.25 mg/kg) was given to rats for 1 wk, and an increased number of cauda epididymal sperm and a delay in sperm transit were observed. Our results indicate that low-dosage guanethidine exposure denervates the epididymis within 1 wk, thereby delaying epididymal transit; however, neither 1- nor 3-wk exposure produces qualitative changes in the sperm.

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“…In humans, Learmonth (1931) systematically stimulated the individual roots of the presacrai (hypogastric) nerve, and confirmed the sympathetic origin of the innervation to the male accessory genital apparatus, including the posterior urethra and the bladder neck. From denervation studies on rabbits, Hodson (1964Hodson ( , 1965 (Falck, Owman & Sjöstrand, 1965; and close to the proximal part of the urethra (Owman, Owman & Sjöberg, 1971). The findings indicate that the region of the bladder neck in guinea-pigs and rats receives its postganglionic adrenergic innervation mainly, if not entirely, from short adrenergic neurons rather than from the hypogastric nerves.…”

Section: Guinea-pig Experimentsmentioning

confidence: 89%

“…The organization appears to be somewhat different in the cat (Hamberger & Norberg, 1965a, b), in which the hypogastric nerves carry a significant portion of postganglionic nerves to the bladder trigonum which, in addition, contains intramural adrenergic ganglion cells. (Remy, 1886;Bacq, 1931;Simeone, 1933;Hodson, 1964Hodson, , 1965 fluid reflux into the bladder usually observe seminal contamination of the urine only after coitus. However, it is possible that the persistent post-denervation reflux is small and therefore escapes detection whereas contraction of surrounding pelvic musculature during coitus promotes the passive transport in the internal genital organs, followed by a more voluminous reflux.…”

Section: Guinea-pig Experimentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Importance of Short Adrenergic Neurons in the Seminal Emission Mechanism of Rat, Guinea-Pig and Man

Owman¹,

Sjöberg²

1972

Reproduction

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Role of the Hypogastric Nerves in Seminal Emission in the Rabbit

Cited by 34 publications

References 8 publications

Fertility of Rat Epididymal Sperm after Chemically and Surgically Induced Sympathectomy1

Fertility of Rat Epididymal Sperm after Chemically and Surgically Induced Sympathectomy1

Rat Epididymal Sperm Quantity, Quality, and Transit Time after Guanethidine-Induced Sympathectomy1

The Importance of Short Adrenergic Neurons in the Seminal Emission Mechanism of Rat, Guinea-Pig and Man

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