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The ultrastructure of the accessory sex organs of the male rat

II. The post-castration involution of the ventral, lateral and the dorsal prostate

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Summary

The ventral, lateral and dorsal lobes of the rat prostate were studied 2, 3, 5, 7 and 21 days after castration. The major changes were a general reduction of the Golgi area and the RER. The cells became pale and contained less organelles compared with the normals. One of the most conspicuous changes were enormous autophagic vacuoles which were present already after 2 days, seemed to reach a numerical peak 3 days after castration and were seldom encountered after 7 days. Increased number of dense bodies were found within the same period. Lipid droplets were observed in the basal cytoplasm of the epithelial cells, especially in the ventral lobe. The basal cells showed the same involution as in the ordinary epithelium. In addition, macrophages were relatively numerous, and between the epithelial cells also lymphocytes were found. The results are discussed in relation to biochemical data on the different lobes.

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Dahl, E., Kjaerheim, Å. The ultrastructure of the accessory sex organs of the male rat. Z.Zellforsch 144, 167–178 (1973). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00307300

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00307300

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