The concentration of carnitine in the luminal fluid of the testis and epididymis of the rat and some other mammals

The distribution of carnitine and acetylcarnitine in the epididymis and epididymal spermatozoa of the boar

“…After the first rise, the carnitine concentration shows only slight gradual increase along the epididymis in the hamster, rabbit and boar (Hinton et al, 1979), but a 3-fold increase has been found in the rat (Hinton et al, 1979), and an 8-fold increase in the ram (Besançon et al, 1985). The origin of acetylcarnitine in the epididymal fluid is unclear.…”

“…The region of the epididymis where the concentration of carnitine first increases is the distal caput in the rat, the distal corpus in the boar and the ram (Hinton et al, 1979) and the proximal cauda in the rabbit and the hamster (Hinton et al, 1979;Casillas & Chaipayungpan, 1979;Casillas et al, 1984). After the first rise, the carnitine concentration shows only slight gradual increase along the epididymis in the hamster, rabbit and boar (Hinton et al, 1979), but a 3-fold increase has been found in the rat (Hinton et al, 1979), and an 8-fold increase in the ram (Besançon et al, 1985).…”

Kinetics of carnitine uptake by rat epididymal cells

“…In [8,9] this carnitine was shown to be transported from the blood into the epididymal lumen against a gradient of 2000: 1 [6] to establish an intraluminal concentration as high as 60 mM [4,10]. However, little is known of the actual mechanism of carnitine uptake in the epididymis.…”

Acétylcarnitine et spermatozoïdes : relation avec la maturation épididymaire et la mobilité chez le verrat et l'homme

“…L'épididyme est l'un des organes où la concentration de carnitine est la plus élevée (Marquis et Fritz, 1965b ;Casillas, 1972 ;Brooks, 1980 (Casillas, 1972(Casillas, , 1973 Chaipayungpan, 1979 ;Inskeep et Hammerstedt, 1982 ;Casillas et al, 1984 (Hinton et al, 1979 ; Chaipayungpan, 1979 ;Casillas et al, 1984). Les Chaipayungpan, 1979 ;Casillas et al, 1984).…”

“…Les Chaipayungpan, 1979 ;Casillas et al, 1984). L'acétylcarnitine du plasma séminal humain n'est pas d'origine épididy-maire et n'est pas un produit du métabolisme des spermatozoïdes (Soufir et Jeulin, 1985 (Hinton et al, 1979;Casillas, 1973; Chaipayungpan, 1979 ;Casillas et al, 1984). Ils précisent qu'il existe un délai entre l'élévation du taux de carnitine dans le plasma et l'augmentation de la charge en carnitine des spermatozoïdes épididymaires de verrat.…”