1973/10/01 by Young S. Moon, Young Soo Moon, Margaret H. Hardy · 3 citations
Medicine · #Reproductive Biology and Fertility #Sperm and Testicular Function #Xenotransplantation and immune response
paper · doi:10.1002/aja.1001380209
crossref issued 1973/10/01 · crossref published 1973/10/01 · crossref published-print 1973/10/01 · openalex publication_date 1973/10/01 · crossref published-online 2005/02/03 · crossref created 2005/02/26 · crossref deposited 2023/11/02 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · crossref indexed 2026/07/30 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/31
Abstract The unusual histogenesis of the fetal pig testis was examined as part of a study of its role in reproductive biology. Three types of interstitial cells were defined and their numbers estimated per unit area of testicular tissue in 6 μ‐serial sections. Statistical analysis of the percentage frequency of each cell type showed that the mature Leydig cells (C‐type) reached a peak at about 4.5 cm crown‐rump length (CRL) fetus and then fell to a low level, rising again sharply from 20 cm CRL until near birth. It was postulated that the first mature Leydig (C‐type) cells arose from mesenchymal (A‐type) cells which differentiated first into immature Leydig (B‐type) cells, and the process was repeated in the last part of fetal life. Mixtures of cock plasma, chicken embryo extract and balanced salt solution allowed maintenance and differentiation of whole fetal testes or testicular slices as organ cultures in Maximow slide assemblies for 6 to 14 days. Medium 199 with 10% bovine serum allowed maintenance and differentiation in some explants for at least six days. Indifferent gonads developed into recognizable testes or ovaries. Testes from 2.5, 3.0, and 3.5 cm CRL fetuses differentiated at a fairly normal rate, and some of their interstitial cells underwent the transformation postulated from the in vivo study. It was concluded that organ cultures from indifferent gonads and early testes provided living, functioning systems which could be used to test for androgenic activity with biological indicators.