title: The origin of lymphatic capillaries in murine testes.
abstract: It is known that the seminiferous tubules are bathed in a sea of lymph in  mice, which are commonly used in reproductive and immunological studies.  Although testicular lymphatic vessels arising from the tunica albuginea can be  macroscopically observed in mice, the exact distribution of the lymphatic  capillaries remains unclear. In the present study, we investigated the  distribution of lymphatic capillaries in normal testes by immunohistochemical  staining with monoclonal antibodies against lymph vessel endothelium  HA-receptor 1 (LYVE-1) and a platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule  (CD31). Moreover, normal lymphocytes were locally injected into the testes of  recipient mice, and their migration was investigated with the use of LYVE-1  and CD31. The results showed that lymphatic capillaries were in and just  beneath the tunica albuginea but not in the interstitium between the  seminiferous tubules. It was also noted that these were abundant in the  thickened tunica albuginea adjacent to the epididymis, but they were scarce in  the thin tunica albuginea opposite the epididymis. When normal lymphocytes  were locally injected into testes, the injected lymphocytes migrated between  the seminiferous tubules and then drained into the lymphatic vessels in the  tunica albuginea. These results suggest that tissue fluid might drain from  lymphatic capillaries that arise just beneath the tunica albuginea.
authors: Department of Anatomy, Tokyo Medical University, 6-1-1, Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-8402, Japan. anatomy@tokyo-med.ac.jp
authors: Shuichi
authors: S
authors: Hirai
authors: Munekazu
authors: M
authors: Naito
authors: Hayato
authors: H
authors: Terayama
authors: Ning
authors: N
authors: Qu
authors: Maimaiti
authors: M
authors: Kuerban
authors: Muhetaerjiang
authors: M
authors: Musha
authors: Ayumi
authors: A
authors: Ikeda
authors: Masahiro
authors: M
authors: Miura
authors: Masahiro
authors: M
authors: Itoh
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D006023:Glycoproteins / Q000276:immunology; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D042601:Lymphatic Vessels / Q000166:cytology*; D008297:Male; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D019408:Platelet Endothelial Cell Adhesion Molecule-1 / Q000276:immunology; D013737:Testis / Q000166:cytology*
chemical_list: D006023:Glycoproteins; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins; D019408:Platelet Endothelial Cell Adhesion Molecule-1; C492273:LYVE1 protein, mouse