Histomorphology of the vesicular and prostate glands of newborn piglets

The economic efficiency of animal husbandry depends on the productivity of the herd, which is usually assessed by analyzing the reproductive performance of females. However, similar indicators of males should be equally taken into account. The accessory sex glands of males are involved in the production of seminal plasma, thereby playing an important role in the reproductive process. The aim of the study is to give a histomorphological characteristic of the accessory sex glands and to determine their functional state in newborn piglets. The object of the study was the accessory sex glands of newborn piglets at the age of 1 day. The vesicular and prostate glands were selected for histological examination. The material was fixed in a 10% solution of neutral formalin for 24 hours, after which it was poured into paraffin according to the generally accepted method. Then sections with a thickness of 3- 5 microns were made, which were stained with hematoxylin and eosin. Some of the sections were painted with Masson Trichrome, alcian blue. It was found that in newborn piglets, the vesicular gland is located on the dorsal surface of the bladder, at the beginning of the pelvic part of the urethra, the prostate gland is located caudally from the vesicular gland, dorsally from the genitourinary canal. The study established the main histomorphological features of the vesicular and prostate glands in newborn piglets. The parenchyma of the glands is in the stage of functional immaturity, most of the organ is occupied by the connective tissue stroma, among the elements of which there is a large number of fibroblastic cells. At the same time, secretory activity of some end sections of the vesicular gland is noted. The data obtained are the starting point for further studies of the functional activity of the cells of the accessory sex glands in boars.