Epididymis – Class 12 | Chapter – 3 | Biology Short Notes Series PDF

Epididymis: The epididymis is a long coiled tube. It is an essential component of the male reproductive tract. It is a site of sperm storage and maturation until the time of their discharge to the vas deferens.

• The wall of the epididymis is lined by thick pseudostratified columnar epithelium.
• Epididymis connects testes to vas deferens.
• When the sperms reach the head of the epididymis, they are not mature & are not motile.
• Sperms take 2-6 days to mature in humans during their transit in the epididymis and become motile.
• Their motility is reduced in the epididymis until ejaculation.
• They are stored until ejaculation, then transported to the ejaculatory duct via vas deferens, and finally come out of the urethra.

Epididymis Structure

It is a large coiled tube. Sperms from seminiferous tubules come to the epididymis, complete maturation and get stored here. At the time of ejaculation, the sperms come to vas deferens and then to urethra through the ejaculatory duct.

Each epididymis is divided into the head, body and tail.

• Head or caput epididymis: It is the broad portion of the epididymis present above the testes posteriorly. It stores the sperms until they are ready for maturation. It is connected to testes by efferent ductules.
• Body or corpus epididymis: It is the long coiled tube, where sperms mature.
• Tail or cauda epididymis: It stores the mature sperm and is connected to the vas deferens.

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By Team Learning Mantras