Canadian Health&Care; Mall

In addition, the tubules that were affected usually displayed a semilunar disruption, i.e., only one half of the tubule was affected in a cross-section. Affected tubules were found at all stages of the cycle of the seminiferous epithelium, suggesting that this phenomenon is not stage specific. The quantitative data indicated very clearly that, while focal areas of Sertoli cell cytoplasm appear swollen, this effect does not extend globally to the entire tubule itself, which actually is reduced by 16%, 35%, and 30% in profile area at 3, 6, and 12 mo, respectively in the FORKO mice relative to the wild-type mice. It is unclear at this time if this shrinkage in cross-sectional area of tubules in the knockout animals is caused by a decrease in the number of cells lining the walls of the tubules, a condensation of all cells lining the tubules, or a decrease in internal fluid pressure or amount that normally keeps the tubules in a more expanded state. Our previous study showed that Sertoli cell numbers at 21 days of age are reduced in the absence of FSH-receptors, as compared with wild-type mice, with a concomitant inability to support a full complement of germ cells in the adult.