This study was conducted in order to observe the changes in cellular associations of seminiferous tubules from 8 to 20 weeks of age and to obtain the cycle and relative duration of the seminiferous epithelia from 24 to 32 weeks of age.
Twenty-eight Korean native male goats were used in the experiment and divided into 7 groups, consisting of 4 goats each, with four weeks intervals from 8 to 32 weeks of age.
The results were summarized as follows :
1. Gonocytes were seen at 8 weeks of age, however they were not observed as from 12 weeks. Both type A-spermatogonia and type B-spermatogonia occurred from 8 weeks, while primary spermatocytes were found from 12 weeks. Secondary spermatocytes and spermatids appeared from 16 weeks, and increased in numbers sequentially until 32 weeks of age, Spermatozoa were observed at first at 20 weeks of age.
2. Type A-spermatogonia appeared approximately twice as many at stage 2 as compared to stage 1, while the same numbers of cells were seen in both stages 1 and 8, showing the least number among 8 stages of the cycle of the seminiferous epithelia. The type B-spermatogonia were found during the stage 5 to 8, not to be detacrable during stage 1 to 4. The number of primary spermatocytes of the leptotene phase increased markedly during stage 1 to 4, and decreased afterwards. The primary spermatocytes of the pachytene phase were shown the least in number at stage 4. The secondary spermatocytes could be seen only at stage 4 and the largest number of spermatids was seen at the stage 4 among 8 stages.
3. The relative frequencies of each stage among stages 1 to 8 of the cycle of the seminiferous epithelia were 27.5, 17.5, 12.8, 5.8, 8.9, 8.3, 12.0 and 7.2% respectively
4. Some of the nuclei of Sertoli cells transformed from the “parallel” type to the “perpendicular” type. This evolution took place from stage 1 to 6, when the number of “perpendicular” type nuclei reached a peak and the number was decreased in the rest of the stages. Thus, establishment of spermatogenesis in Korean native goats was completed at the age of 20 weeks.
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