Prof. Mana Raj Kolakshyapati, Ph.D.

Lecture:

Male and Female Reproductive Systems and Hormonal Regulations

Animal reproductive system, any of the organ systems by which animals reproduce. The
role of reproduction is to provide for the continued existence of a species; it is the
process by which living organisms duplicate themselves.

In order for a species to thrive, it must be able to reproduce itself. Producing offspring
requires the proper functioning of both the male and female reproductive systems, each
of which consists of several parts that have specific purposes in the reproductive system.
Hormones also play an important role in reproduction.

Parts of the Male Reproductive System

The male animal possesses special reproductive organs. These organs are similar in all
male mammals, although some differences in form and function do exist. The bull can be
used to illustrate the male mammalian reproductive system.

Bull – A bull is a male bovine. Its reproductive system contains a number of different
parts (Figure 1.1). A bull has two testicles, which are located in the scrotum beneath the
animal. An epididymis is located in the scrotum next to each testicle. The epididymis is
connected to the urethra by the vas deferens. The seminal vesicles, prostate gland, and
Cowper’s gland (also called the bulbourethral gland) are located next to the bladder
where the vas deferens meets the urethra. The urethra extends from this point to the
penis.The sigmoid flexure is located midway along the urethra, which also has a retractor
muscle attached to it.The sheath provides an opening for the penis.

Boar – A boar is a male swine. The boar’s reproductive parts are pictured in Figure 1.2.
One difference between the boar and the bull is the positioning of the testicles and
scrotum, which are located at the rear of the boar rather than at the bottom of the
animal. The form of the penis, which is shaped like a corkscrew, also differs from the
bulls.

Ram – A ram is a male sheep. The ram differs from the bull in that a filiform appendage
extends from the head of the penis. In the ram, the sheath is also referred to as a
prepuce.

Stallion – In horses, a male is called a stallion. In contrast to the bull, the stallion’s
scrotum is located further toward the rear of the animal and is less pendulous. The
stallion also lacks a sigmoid flexure.
Dog – The Cowper’s gland and seminal vesicles are absent in the male dog. The dog also
does not have a sigmoid flexure. The sheath of the penis is referred to as a prepuce.

Anatomy and Physiology of Male Reproductive System

The purpose of the organs of the male reproductive system is to perform the following functions:

 To produce, maintain, and transport sperm (the male reproductive cells) and protective fluid
(semen)
 To discharge sperm within the female reproductive tract during sex
 To produce and secrete male sex hormones responsible for maintaining the male reproductive
system

Unlike the female reproductive system, most of the male reproductive system is located
outside of the body. These external structures include the penis, scrotum, and testicles
This table briefly summarizes the major organs, locations, and functions of mammalian male
reproductive anatomy:
Organ Location Function
Scrotum External Carry and support testes
Deliver urine, copulating
Penis External organ
Produce sperm and male
Testes External hormones
Contribute to semen
Seminal vesicles Internal production
Contribute to semen
Prostate gland Internal production
Bulbourethral Clean urethra at
glands Internal ejaculation

The primary organs of reproduction in male are two testes which produce sperms. These organs are
located in a bag-like out pocketing of the abdominal wall known as scrotum. Other parts of the male
reproductive system consist of epididymis, vasdeferens, seminal vesicles, prostate gland, bulbo-
urethral or Cowper’s glands, urethra and penis.

 Testes perform the dual role of producing sperms and secreting the male sex hormone
testosterone.
 Sperms are produced in the semniferous tubules which are long coiled tubes, the inner walls of
which are lined with germinal epithelium. Between the seminiferous tubules, there are blood
vessels, connective tissue, nerves and the interstitial or leydig cells.
 These interstitial cells secrete the male sex hormone testosterone which is responsible for
typical male attitude and action. It helps in the development and maintenance of the entire
male reproductive system.
 An increased level of the male hormone, starting from puberty, produces libido and secondary
sexual characteristics.

Epididymis is a highly coiled tubule connected to the seminiferous tubules.

 The sperms undergo development and become mature in the epididymis where they are stored.
 The vas deferens connects the epididymis to the urethra. It also possesses glands which
contribute to the fluid portion of semen.
 The seminal vesicles are located in the pelvic cavity at the ends of the vasa deferentia as an
outgrowth. They produce the largest part of the seminal plasma.
Prostate Gland is a compound gland consisting of a large number of lobules surrounding the urethra at
the neck of bladder. The secretion from this gland contributes to the seminal fluid. The composition of
the prostatic fluid varies to a great extent between species.

The cowper’s glands are found on either side of the urethra. They are often called the bulbo-urethral
glands and are small, firm and oval in shape. Little is known about the function of the secretion from
these glands. The main function of the secretion from Cowper's glands appears to be to cleanse the
urethra in the first fraction of ejaculate of semen.

The urethra is a duct connecting the bladder to the external orifice at the distal end of the penis which
passes through the penis. It has two important functions:

 Carrying urine for excretion from the bladder to the external orifice.
 Transporting semen to the reproductive tract of the female.
The penis is the copulatory organ of the male. The urethra runs through this and, therefore, the
functions of elimination of urine and transporting semen to the female genital tract can be attributed to
the penis. It is made up ·of muscular and erectile tissues that become engorged with blood when the
animal is sexually stimulated resulting in erection.

Reproductive tract of the bull

The avian reproductive system

The avian reproductive system is heterosexual and requires both a male and a female, each to
contribute half of the genetic constitution of the offspring. The male contributes his half by way of the
sperm produced by the testes and carried in the semen. The female contributes hers in the ovum
carried by the egg yolk produced by the ovary. The ovum is often referred to as the blastodisc,
blastoderm or germ disc. After release from the follicle on the ovary, the yolk moves into the oviduct
where it is fertilised and has added to it the albumen, shell membranes and shell.

Male reproductive system

The male reproductive organs in the domestic fowl consist of two testes, each with a deferent duct that
leads from the testes to the cloaca. Fowls do not have a penis such as is found in other animals. The
testes are bean shaped bodies located against the backbone at the front of the kidney. Their size is not
constant and they become larger when the birds are actively mating. The left testes is often larger than
the right. On the inside of each is a small, flattened area that is believed to correspond to the epididymis
of mammals. The deferent duct starts at this flattened area.

Deferent duct

The deferent duct transports the sperm from the testes where they are formed to the cloaca from which
they enter the oviduct of the female when mating. The deferent duct enters a small pimple-like
structure in the cloaca. This structure equates to the mammalian penis and is much larger in ducks to
form a penis like organ. The deferent duct is quite narrow at first but widens as it approaches the cloaca.

Testes and sperm

In the testes very twisted tubes called seminiferous tubules are found. It is in these tubules that a special
process of cell division called meiosis and transformation produces the sperm. The sperm carry half of
the total chromosomes required to produce an embryo. The mother provides the other half. One cubic
millimetre of the fluid called semen produced by the male contains on average 3-5 million sperm. Under
a microscope the sperm of the fowl will be seen to have a long pointed head with a long tail. The testes
also produce hormones called androgens that influence the development of what are called secondary
sex characteristics such as comb growth and condition, male behavior and mating.

Hormonal regulation of the male reproductive tract

A hormone is a chemical substance secreted by an organ of the body. When released into the
bloodstream, it triggers a specific response in another organ. Reproductive hormones affect the activity
of the parts of the reproductive system.

Gonadotrophin releasing hormone (GnRH) is a reproductive hormone produced by the hypothalamus

gland, which is found in the brain; GnRH is not present in fowl.

The anterior lobe of the pituitary gland secretes follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) as well as luteinizing
hormone (LH). LH is also sometimes referred to as interstitial cell stimulating hormone (ICSH).

The sex hormones that control male reproductive development and behavior are collectively called
androgens. The androgen testosterone is produced in the testicles of all the species except rabbits,
which produce another androgen.

The Role of Hormones

Hormones play an important role in reproduction. A delicate balance exists among the various
hormones.
In mammals, GnRH stimulates the anterior pituitary gland in the brain to release both FSH and LH, which
are essential to reproduction. In fowl, the release of FSH from the pituitary is stimulated by increased
light. FSH affects the tubules in the testicles, causing them to produce sperm. LH causes the interstitial
cells in the testicles to secrete androgens.

Androgens like testosterone stimulate the development, growth, and activity of reproductive parts. The
production of androgens triggers a maturing stage called puberty, in which the reproductive parts
mature as the ideal hormone level is reached.

 Testosterone and other Androgens also trigger the development of male secondary sex
characteristics. These characteristics may include a deep voice, heavy muscling, and
 aggressiveness; in fowl, sex characteristics may consist of plumage, a wattle and comb, and
crowing. Sex drive, which is the desire and ability to mate, is similarly stimulated by androgens.
They also function in the production of sperm.

 The primary regulation of reproduction lies with the brain which elaborates the releasing
hormones. The releasing hormones in their turn stimulate the anterior pituitary to produce and
release the gonadotropic hormones.
 Thus, the FSH-releasing factor of brain stimulates the production of Follicle Stimulating
Hormone (FSH) and the LH-releasing factor, Luteinizing Hormone (LH).
 The brain seems to be controlled by the servo or feed-back mechanism in elaborating releasing
factors.
 If these gonadotropic hormones are not produced in sufficient quantities in the young animal,
that animal will not attain sexual maturity.
 Failure of production of gonadotropins in the adult will result in impaired spermatogenesis, as
well as impaired testosterone production.
 FSH brings about mainly the development of seminiferous tubules and is concerned with sperm
production.
 LH on the other hand stimulates the development of interstitial cells and hormone production.
 The role of testosterone is:
o inducing puberty, in developing secondary sexual characters, in stimulating libido and
controlling development and maintenance of the entire male reproductive tract may be
stated that, there are a number of naturally occurring and synthesized compounds
having the male sex hormone activity which are collectively called androgens or
androgenic hormones. The specific androgenic hormone produced by the testes is
called testosterone.