Elimination of stored material from the seminal vesicles of the guinea pig following castration.

Experiments were carried out to determine what factors are involved in the disappearance of stored secretion from the seminal vesicles of the guinea pig and in the concurrent decline in weight of these glands following castration. Seminal vesicles of sexually mature males were unilaterally ligated, and the males were either castrated or left testes intact for a 14-day period. At necropsy, the seminal vesicles were removed and weighed, and biopsies were collected for histological inspection. The weight of nonligated vesicles from castrated males declined to less than half that of ligated sides. In testes-intact males, the weight of ligated vesicles was nearly double that of nonligated vesicles. Epithelial cell heights remained unchanged during the study. The rapid decline in weight of the guinea pig seminal vesicles following castration was attributed to the elimination of stored secretion by way of the urethra rather than by absorption.