Male mice were divided into two groups; one group was castrated at 50 days of age, and the other, at 100 days of age, respectively. Adrenal cortices were histologically studied in mice of each group at varying intervals following castration.
No consistent changes were observed in the outer part of the cortex in both groups.
Castration at 50 days of age caused reappearance of the reticularis, whereas that at 100 days of age does not result in formation of this zone with the exception of a few cases.
The reticularis which appears following castration at 50 days of age, namely the secondary X zone, is differentiated from the inner part of the fasciculata, and becomes characteristic at 25-30 days after operation. Then, however, this zone gradually tends to undergo degeneration and becomes transformed into the empty reticularis, that is, spongy tissue, although the degree of degeneration varies from individual to individual. A part of the reticularis often remains even after long periods of over 150 days following operation, although its amount varies in different individuals.
In many of the male mice castrated at 100 days of age, the cells of the inner part of the fasciculata enlarge and lose their accumulation of lipoid. Thus the inner fasciculata appears as a considerably dark layer in contrast with the clear outer fasciculata. Such changes become first evident at 5-10 days following castration, and later occur in many of the cases studied.
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