OBSERVATIONS ON THE REORGANIZATION OF THE SEMINIFEROUS TUBULES OF THE RAT TESTIS IN VITRO / 解剖学报

ABSTRACT

The Sertoli cell-rich or Sertoli-germ cell aggregates of 15-21 day immature rat testis were cultured in serum-free Ham F-12 medium for observation of the reorganization of the seminiferous tubules in vitro. The results showed that after first week of culture, the cell aggregates were spreaded on the bottom of culture dish as a monolayer consisted of Sertoli cells as well as spermatogenic cells. While after second week these monolayer cell cultures rearranged and transformed into cellular cords which connected each other to form a cellular rete. During this time, there were many small cells with long cytoplasmic processes appeared in the cultures. They looked like immature spermatozoon-like cells which were released from the cellular cords and floated in the medium, however no movement was detected. After third week, the cellular cords developed into a solid or tubule-like structures consisted of Sertoli cells and spermatogenie cells in different stages of spermatogenesis.These cultures have been studied by phase-microscopy in vitro, light and electron microscopy on semithin and ultrathin sections. These studies revealed that the Sertoli cells and Sertoli-germ cell aggregates of immature rat testis, in vitro, not only developed into monolayer cell culture as mentioned, but were also able to be further reconstructed, or reorganized, in some extent, to solid and tubule-like structures. The possible significance and mechanism were discussed.