STUDIES OF DISTRIBUTION OF BLOOD VESSELS OF NORMAL RAT PROSTATE, SEMINAL VESICLES, COAGULATING GLANDS AND VASA DEFERENTIA

Abstract

The distribution of blood vessels within the prostate, seminal vesicles, coagulating glands (anterior lobes) and vasa deferentia of 13 normal rats were observed by carbon or/and barium injection technique, and the microvascular architecture within them was investigated by scanning electron microscopy of vascular resin casts. Each vessel was examined histologically with a light microscope.
1. The superior vesical artery arose from the common iliac artery at the root of the internal iliac artery but in some cases (33.3%) arose cranially to the internal iliac artery. After giving rise successively to the deferential artery, the seminal vesicle artery (ventral branch), the prostatic artery (ventral branch) and the inferior vesical artery, it distributed to the dorsal surface of the bladder. But the inferior vesical artery arose from the superior vesical artery proximally to the deferential artery in 20% cases. The prostatic artery (ventral branch) arose in 71.4% cases from the superior vesical artery, in 14.3% cases from the seminal vesicle artery (ventral branch), in 7.1% cases from both the seminal vesicle artery (ventral branch) and the superior vesical artery and in 7.1% cases from the seminal vesicle artery (ventral branch) and the middle hemorrhoidal artery. The prostatic artery (ventral branch) divided in turn into the dorsal branch, the lateral branch and the ventral branch. The middle hemorrhoidal artery which arose from the internal iliac artery gave rise to the seminal vesicle artery (dorsal branch), and the prostatic artery (dorsal branch) which arose from the middle hemorrhoidal artery and the artery from the seminal vesicle artery (dorsal branch) supplied the dorsal prostate.
2. The microvascular architecture of the ventral prostate consisted of capillaries which arose from arterioles and formed the capillary-network of irregular square to hexagon, and surrounded ducts and acini.
3. Histologically the superior vesical artery was a muscular type artery, the ventral, lateral and dorsal branches were small arteries, interductal arteries were arterioles and vessels under the prostatic epithelium were capillaries. In the prostate the diameter of the small artery was on the average 113μm, that of the arteriole 42μm and that of the capillary 6.4μm.