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Lesson: Chapter 14 — Continuity of Life

14.3. The male reproductive system 2 of 4

How it works

With a male reaching puberty, the production of sperm begins.

  • The sperm mother cells within the seminiferous tubules are converted into sperm in this way.
  • As the sperm mature, they are pushed towards the middle of the seminiferous tubules.
  • The sperm produced are deposited temporarily within the epididymis.
  • In intercourse, the sperm come along the vas deferens and join the urethra, and the secretion released from the seminal vesicles, the prostate gland and Cowper's glands is added to it.

Semen

This secretion containing the sperm cells is called semen. Within one millilitre (1 ml) of it there are several million sperm cells.

Figure to be added

Figure 14.21 — the structure of a seminiferous tubule: the epididymis and seminiferous tubules, a transverse section of a tubule, and the interstitial cells with sperm cells attached.

Made in one place, stored in another

Sperm are produced in the seminiferous tubules of the testis but stored in the epididymis, and only leave along the vas deferens. Keeping that order straight makes the whole pathway easy: testis → epididymis → vas deferens → urethra.