Summary
The ultrastructure of testis of immature rats from birth to ten postnatal days was studied in order to describe the development of germ cells into definitive spermatogonia. The primordial germ cells showed no structural changes from birth to 4 days after birth. At the 5th postnatal day the gonocytes were transformed into darker cells and began to migrate towards the basement membrane. As they reached the periphery of the seminiferous cords they resumed mitoses and gave rise to smaller gonocytes, which were progressively transformed in definitive spermatogonia. A lighter kind of supporting cell was also detected.
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We wish to thank Mrs. L. Giaccardo, A. Pozzolini and E. Taccini for skilled technical assistance.
From the Department of Medical Pathology, Pisa University, Pisa, Italia.
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Novi, A.M., Saba, P. An electron microscopic study of the development of rat testis in the first 10 postnatal days. Zeitschrift für Zellforschung 86, 313–326 (1968). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00332472
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00332472