engleski

Testis Structure Of The Striped Dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba) from The Adriatic Sea

The striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba) despite a wide area of distribution is not a native species in the Adriatic Sea. For that reason, finding a fresh carcass is a real rarity. The bottlenosed dolphin is the only native species of the order Cetacea in the Adriatic Sea. Consequently, most of our morphological researches on marine mammals refer to the bottlenosed dolphin. The study included two male dolphins, of which each belonged to one of the previously mentioned species. The dissection was made and the testis samples were taken. Tissue sections of testes were prepared and treated with Mallory method, hematoxylin/eosin and Feulgen's DNA expression reaction. The structure of the testis was analyzed with a light microscope and stereomicroscope. The testis structure in dolphins is the same as in the land mammals. Germinative epithelium of the seminiferous tubules consists of more cell layers without any lumen in the striped dolphin. The reason of this is an inactive reproductive phase even this animal died during the summer. The lumen of the seminiferous tubules in bottlenosed dolphin was full of spermatozoa even this animal died during the winter. These findings agree with the literature confirming a seasonality of mating of the striped dolphin, opposite to the bottlenosed dolphin.

striped dolphin, testis, histology

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