The testes are a pair of male reproductive glands that are sometimes also referred to as the testicles. After human adolescence, the glands are responsible for producing sperm, the male reproductive cells, but before that time remain in an immature state.

View an image of the immature testes section at 40x magnification.

During embryonic development, the testes originate in the abdomen near the kidneys. Late in the developmental process, around the seventh or eight month of pregnancy, the glands move into their lower position within the scrotal sac. This change of position is regulated by the male sex hormone testosterone, the secretion of which is stimulated by the hormone called chorionic gonadotropin exuded by the placenta. Occasionally, the testes do not descend properly, remaining within the abdomen even after birth. In such cases, medical treatment is usually necessary in order to avoid sterility.

Once the child is born, testosterone production quickly tapers off and stops altogether in a matter of weeks. The resulting lack of the hormone within in the body causes the testes of male children to remain in an undeveloped condition. It is not until the onset of puberty when the pituitary gland begins to produce gonadotropic hormones that sexual maturation of the testes takes place. The hormones secreted by the gland promote tissue growth in the testes, eventually making it possible for the reproductive glands to generate both sperm and androgens.

BACK TO THE BRIGHTFIELD MICROSCOPY IMAGE GALLERY

Questions or comments? Send us an email.

© 1998-2022 by Michael W. Davidson and The Florida State University. All Rights Reserved. No images, graphics, scripts, or applets may be reproduced or used in any manner without permission from the copyright holders. Use of this website means you agree to all of the Legal Terms and Conditions set forth by the owners.

This website is maintained by our
Graphics & Web Programming Team
in collaboration with Optical Microscopy at the
National High Magnetic Field Laboratory.

Last modification: Friday, Nov 13, 2015 at 01:19 PM

Access Count Since November 25, 2003: 36144

All of the images in this gallery were captured with a QImaging Retiga camera system.
For more information on these cameras, use the button below to access
the QImaging website:

For more information on microscope manufacturers,
use the buttons below to navigate to their websites: