Functional anatomy of the testicular vascular pedicle in the rhesus monkey: evidence for a local testosterone concentrating mechanism (38513).

The detailed anatomy of arteries and veins in the testicular pedicle of the rhesus monkey, with special emphasis on an area of extensive surface contact between these vessels in the spermatic cord, is described. The mean plasma testosterone concentration in blood from the testicular artery was significantly greater than the mean for samples collected simultaneously from the contralateral femoral artery in 11 monkeys. These observations are interpreted as supportive of the hypothesis that a hormone concentrating mechanism involving the local transfer of testoterone between the vessels of the pampiniform plexus and the spermatic artery exists in the male-rhesus monkey.