Pudney J, Callard G V
J Morphol. 1984 Jul;181(1):87-95. doi: 10.1002/jmor.1051810108.
In Necturus maculosus the organization of the interstitial tissue varies according to the stage of spermatogenesis. Leydig cells at various stages of differentiation and myoid cells are always present in this tissue. The Leydig cells are undifferentiated at all phases of germ cell activity and only hypertrophy following spermiation and degeneration of Sertoli cells. These Leydig cells are structurally analogous to mammalian Leydig cells. They do not form part of the lamina propria of the seminiferous lobules and hence cannot be referred to as lobule-boundary cells previously described in the urodele testis (Lofts, '74). When the Leydig cells hypertrophy, numerous unmyelinated axons appear in the interstitial tissue. These axons, often devoid of Schwann-cell cytoplasm, occur in close proximity to Leydig cells. Because the levels of both Substance P and neurotensin increased in the testis of Necturus maculosus as Leydig cells differentiated, we concluded that these neural elements may regulate Leydig-cell function locally, through the release of neuropeptides.
在黄斑美西螈中，间质组织的结构随精子发生阶段的不同而变化。不同分化阶段的莱迪希细胞和肌样细胞始终存在于该组织中。在生殖细胞活动的所有阶段，莱迪希细胞都是未分化的，仅在精子发生后及支持细胞退化时肥大。这些莱迪希细胞在结构上类似于哺乳动物的莱迪希细胞。它们不是生精小叶固有层的一部分，因此不能被称为先前在有尾类睾丸中描述的小叶边界细胞（洛夫茨，1974年）。当莱迪希细胞肥大时，间质组织中会出现许多无髓轴突。这些轴突通常没有施万细胞的细胞质，与莱迪希细胞紧密相邻。由于随着莱迪希细胞的分化，黄斑美西螈睾丸中P物质和神经降压素的水平均升高，我们得出结论，这些神经成分可能通过释放神经肽在局部调节莱迪希细胞的功能。
