Connections of the sympathetic trunk and spinal cord with the pelvic plexus in the sheep.
On 16 specimens of sheep of either sex the connections of the lumbo-sacral portion of the synpathetic trunk and of the spinal cord with the pelvic plexus were investigated bilaterally. On the basis of the studies it was found that the sympathetic branches proceed from the ganglia L3-L7 and S1-S4 of the sympathetic trunk, including in the lumbar portion 62.5% from L3-L6, 18.7% from L3-L5, 12.5% from L4-L6 and 6.2% from L4-L7, while in the sacral portion 56.2% from S1-S4, 31.2% from S2-S4 and 12.5% from S1S2S4. The parasympathetic branches proceed from the abdominal branches of the sacral spinal nerves (n. pudendus et n. haemorrhoidalis, fig. 3) at the height of S2-S4, including 75% from S3-S4 and 25% from S2S3S4.
D000818:Animals; D002799:Cholinergic Fibers / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D005260:Female; D005727:Ganglia, Spinal / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D008297:Male; D010388:Pelvis / Q000294:innervation*; D012756:Sheep / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D013127:Spinal Nerves / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D013564:Sympathetic Nervous System / Q000033:anatomy & histology*