Testicular Descent

Mamoulakis, Charalampos; Antypas, Spyridon; Sofras, Frank; Takenaka, Atsushi; Sofikitis, Nikolaos

doi:10.14310/horm.2002.1634

Cited by 8 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 102 publications

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“…This hypothesis involves the gubernaculum in the role of an anchor -one structure holding another in place. In this case, the gubernaculum holding the testis steady while the abdominal cavity and organs expand greatly upward (Hutson et al 2004, Mamoulakis et al 2015.…”

Section: How? the Gubernaculum As An Anchor A Tractor And A Snowplowmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Some continued on next page are strong collagenous fibers; similar to the collagen that makes our skin flexible yet tough. Some are elastic fibers, capable of stretching and returning to shape (Barteczko and Jacob 2000, Costa et al 2002, Mamoulakis et al 2015. The presence and importance of muscle fibers in the gubernaculum is a little more controversial.…”

Section: How? the Gubernaculum As An Anchor A Tractor And A Snowplowmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In females they are shortlived, never grow in size, and quickly seal shut, never to open again. In males however, the gubernacula extend into each of the inguinal canals, and under the influence of testosterone, they swell in size, increase substantially in diameter, and as a result cause the inguinal canals to increase in size as well (Figure 2) (Barteczko and Jacob 2000, Heyns and Hutson 1995, Hutson et al 2016, Mamoulakis et al 2015. The gubernacula seem to be clearing a path for the testes to pass through the abdominal wall much like a snowplow clears the way for cars to pass through a wall of snow.…”

Section: How? the Gubernaculum As An Anchor A Tractor And A Snowplowmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Whether muscle tissue plays a role is unclear, but once the snowplow gubernaculum has opened up the tunnel, it then appears to pull like a tractor, and with a little pressure from the other side, the testis "pops" into the subdermal space. This "pop" actually takes two to three days and usually occurs around the 26 th week of development (Barteczko and Jacob 2000, Heyns and Hutson 1995, Hutson et al 2016, Mamoulakis et al 2015.…”

Section: How? the Gubernaculum As An Anchor A Tractor And A Snowplowmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Several hypotheses have been proposed as the reason many mammalian species, including humans, have scrotal testes (Kleisner et al 2010, Mamoulakis et al 2015, Werdelin and Nilsonne 1999. Three of these have received less attention, but are nevertheless worthy of consideration.…”

Section: Why? Multiple Hypotheses and Alternative Solutionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Gubernaculum and the Evolution of Testicular Descent

Darda¹

2017

HAPS ED

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Adding an evolutionary perspective to anatomy teaching can enrich student learning. One way of introducing evolutionary concepts into a course is by "sneaking it in" by presenting interesting and sometimes entertaining "stories" that add anatomical detail, encourage critical thinking, and illustrate underlying evolutionary history and concepts. The gubernaculum tells one such story; a story that involves the movement of the testes through the fetal abdominal cavity and finally into the scrotum. While it is well understood that the proximate importance of this migration is to guarantee an appropriate thermal environment for sperm production, our understanding of the role of the gubernaculum in anchoring, pulling, and clearing the way for the testes as they descend is only now coming to light. Even less clear is our understanding of the evolutionary forces that ultimately led to such a seemingly vulnerable positioning of the testes. Multiple hypotheses have been proposed, and whether one or more can ultimately explain the seemingly complicated process and curious anatomy, the essential evolutionary test has obviously been met-it works.The information contained in this article will enhance student comprehension of the gubernaculum and their appreciation for the evolutionary history of testicular descent and related concepts associated with the pedagogy of courses in Human Anatomy and Human Anatomy and Physiology.

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Section: How? the Gubernaculum As An Anchor A Tractor And A Snowplowmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: How? the Gubernaculum As An Anchor A Tractor And A Snowplowmentioning

confidence: 99%