Histology Of Epididymis
The epididymis is a tube that connects a testicle to a vas deferens in the male reproductive system. It is present in all male reptiles, birds, and mammals. It is a single, narrow, tightly-coiled tube in adult humans, 6 to 7 meters (20 to 23 ft) in length connecting the efferent ducts from the rear of each testicle to its vas deferens.
Structure
The epididymis can be divided into three main regions:
The head (Latin: caput). The head of the epididymis receives spermatozoa via the efferent ducts of the mediastinium of the testis. It is characterized histologically by a thick epithelium with long stereocilia (described below) and a little smooth muscle. It is involved in absorbing fluid to make the sperm more concentrated. The concentration of the sperm here is dilute.
The body (Latin: corpus). This has an intermediate epithelium and smooth muscle thickness.
The tail (Latin: cauda). This has the thinnest epithelium of the three regions and the greatest quantity of smooth muscleThe epididymis is covered by a two layered pseudostratified epithelium. The epithelium is separated by a basement membrane from the connective tissue wall which has smooth muscle cells. The major cell types in the epithelium are:
Principal cells: columnar cells that, with the basal cells, form the majority of the epithelium. In the caput (head) region these cells have long stereocilia that are tuft like extensions that project into the lumen. The sterocilia are much shorter in the cauda (tail) segment .They also secrete carnitine, sialic acid, glycoproteins, and glycerylphosphorylcholine into the lumen.
Basal cells: shorter, pyramid-shaped cells which contact the basal lamina but taper off before their apical surfaces reach the lumen. These are thought to be undifferentiated precursors of principal cells.
Apical cells: predominantly found in the head region
Clear cells: predominant in the tail region
Intraepithelial lymphocytes: distributed throughout the tissue.
Intraepithelial macrophages
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