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Reproduction (2005) 130 713-720
DOI: 10.1530/rep.1.00696
Copyright © 2005 Society for Reproduction and Fertility
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RESEARCH

Placentation in the African elephant, Loxodonta africana. IV. Growth and function of the fetal gonads

W R Allen, S Mathias and M Ford1

University of Cambridge, Department of Veterinary Medicine Equine Fertility Unit, Mertoun Paddocks, Woodditton Road, Newmarket, Suffolk CB8 9BH, UK and 1 University of Pretoria, Mammal Research Unit, Pretoria 0002, South Africa

Correspondence should be addressed to W R Allen; Email: efu{at}tesco.net

The gonads, both ovaries and testes, of 44 elephant fetuses weighing 0.09–112 kg (6.1–21.3 months gestation) were examined grossly and histologically. As in equids, elephant fetal gonads undergo a phase of marked growth and enlargement during the second half of gestation, which is more pronounced in ovaries than testes due to growth and antrum formation of numerous follicles in the former. Stromal cells undergo hypertrophy and transformation to form zones of interstitial cells that are associated with the enlarged follicles in the ovaries and in which the primitive seminiferous tubules are embedded in the testes. The interstitial cells have the capacity to synthesize 5{alpha}-dihydroprogesterone and other 5{alpha}-reduced progestagens from cholesterol and pregnenelone and the hypothesis is raised that these fetal gonadal progestagens may supplement significantly the progestagens secreted by the multiple large corpora lutea of pregnancy in the elephant.




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W.R Allen
Ovulation, pregnancy, placentation and husbandry in the African elephant (Loxodonta africana)
Phil Trans R Soc B, May 29, 2006; 361(1469): 821 - 834.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


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