Center of Biological and Health Science, UFOB - Universidade Federal do Oeste da Bahia, Barreiras, Bahia, Brazil.
Department of Biology, UNESP - Univ. Estadual Paulista, São José do Rio Preto, São Paulo, Brazil.
J Morphol. 2021 Aug;282(8):1188-1207. doi: 10.1002/jmor.21362. Epub 2021 May 3.
The prostate is an important gland that contributes to the male reproductive process, producing secretions that are essential for maintaining ideal conditions for the survival of sperm. Studies indicate a wide variation in the occurrence, morphology, and physiology of this gland in mammals, especially in bats, with this variation being related not only to the number of regions and their degree of compaction/lobulation but also to fluctuations in their functioning throughout the year. Thus, the aim of this study was to evaluate the annual morphological and physiological variations of the male prostate of Artibeus lituratus and analyze their responses to annual abiotic variations and hormonal control. Sixty sexually adult males of A. lituratus were analyzed in this study, with five specimens collected monthly. Blood samples were submitted to serum hormone measurements and the prostates were morphologically, morphometrically, and immunohistochemically analyzed. The results indicated that the two prostatic regions (ventral and dorsal) of A. lituratus had different morphology, as well as different physiology and regulation. Annual fluctuations in abiotic factors seemed to influence the dorsal region more than the ventral region. Conversely, variations on testicular factors, such as testosterone and estradiol, influenced the ventral region more than the dorsal region. Despite these differences, both prostatic regions were strongly synchronized to the main reproductive peak of the species in September. The holocrine pattern of the ventral prostate was not directly affected by abiotic factors or by factors released by the testes.
前列腺是男性生殖过程中一个重要的腺体，它产生的分泌物对于维持精子存活的理想条件至关重要。研究表明，哺乳动物（尤其是蝙蝠）的前列腺在发生、形态和生理方面存在广泛的变异，这种变异不仅与区域数量及其致密/分叶程度有关，还与全年功能的波动有关。因此，本研究旨在评估 A. lituratus 雄性前列腺的年度形态和生理变化，并分析其对年度非生物变化和激素控制的反应。在这项研究中分析了 60 只性成熟的 A. lituratus 雄性，每月采集 5 个标本。对血液样本进行血清激素测量，并对前列腺进行形态学、形态计量学和免疫组织化学分析。结果表明，A. lituratus 的两个前列腺区域（腹侧和背侧）具有不同的形态，以及不同的生理学和调节机制。非生物因素的年度波动似乎对背侧区域的影响大于腹侧区域。相反，睾丸因素（如睾酮和雌二醇）的变化对腹侧区域的影响大于背侧区域。尽管存在这些差异，但两个前列腺区域都与 9 月物种的主要生殖高峰期强烈同步。腹侧前列腺的全浆分泌模式不受非生物因素或睾丸释放的因素的直接影响。
