title: Involvement of Fibroblast Growth Factors and Their Receptors in Epididymo-Testicular Descent and Maldescent.
abstract: Maldescent of the epididymo-testicular unit can occur as an isolated event or as a component of various syndromes. When part of a syndrome, crypto-epididymis is usually accompanied by other genital and/or extragenital features. Epididymis development is primarily regulated by androgens, and successful epididymo-testicular unit development and descent requires an intact hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis. The developing gonadotropin-releasing hormone system is essential for epididymo-testicular descent and is highly sensitive to reduced fibroblast growth factor (FGF) signaling. Our understanding of the impact of FGFR1 in the process of epididymo-testicular descent has recently improved. At later stages of embryonic development, the undifferentiated epididymal mesenchyme is a specific domain for FGFR1 expression. The majority of individuals with syndromic crypto-epididymis, as well as individuals with isolated maldescent of the epididymo-testicular unit, exhibit some disturbance of FGF, FGFR1 and/or genes involved in hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis regulation. However, the mechanisms underlying FGF dysregulation may differ between various syndromes.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Cryptorchidism Research, Kindermedizinisches Zentrum Liestal, Liestal, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Faruk
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Hadziselimovic
keywords: Androgens; Epididymo-testicular descent; FGF8; FGFR1; GnRH; Gubernaculum epididymis