The prostate is shaped like an inverted rounded cone with a larger base, which is continuous above with the neck of the bladder, and a narrower apex, which rests below on the pelvic floor. The inferolateral surfaces of the prostate are in contact with the levator ani muscles that together cradle the prostate between them.
The prostate develops as 30 to 40 individual complex glands, which grow from the urethral epithelium into the surrounding wall of the urethra. Collectively, these glands enlarge the wall of the urethra into what is known as the prostate; however, the individual glands retain their own ducts, which empty independently into the prostatic sinuses on the posterior aspect of the urethral lumen (see Fig. 5.45C).
Secretions from the prostate, together with secretions from the seminal vesicles, contribute to the formation of semen during ejaculation.
The ejaculatory ducts pass almost vertically in an anteroinferior direction through the posterior aspect of the prostate to open into the prostatic urethra.
The bulbo-urethral glands (see Fig. 5.47A), one on each side, are small, pea-shaped mucous glands situated within the deep perineal pouch. They are lateral to the membranous part of the urethra. The duct from each gland passes inferomedially through the perineal membrane, to open into the bulb of the spongy urethra at the root of the penis.
Together with small glands positioned along the length of the spongy urethra, the bulbo-urethral glands contribute to lubrication of the urethra and the pre-ejaculatory emission from the penis.
The reproductive tract in women is contained mainly in the pelvic cavity and perineum, although during pregnancy, the uterus expands into the abdominal cavity. Major components of the system consist of: an ovary on each side, and a uterus, vagina, and clitoris in the midline (Fig. 5.50).
In addition, a pair of accessory glands (the greater vestibular glands) are associated with the tract.
Like the testes in men, the ovaries develop high on the posterior abdominal wall and then descend before birth, bringing with them their vessels, lymphatics, and nerves. Unlike the testes, the ovaries do not migrate through the inguinal canal into the perineum, but stop short and assume a position on the lateral wall of the pelvic cavity (Fig. 5.51).
The ovaries are the sites of egg production (oogenesis). Mature eggs are ovulated into the peritoneal cavity and normally directed into the adjacent openings of the uterine tubes by cilia on the ends of the uterine tubes.
The ovaries lie adjacent to the lateral pelvic wall just inferior to the pelvic inlet. Each of the two almond-shaped ovaries is about 3 cm long and is suspended by a mesentery (the mesovarium) that is a posterior extension of the broad ligament.
The uterus is a thick-walled muscular organ in the midline between the bladder and rectum (see Fig. 5.51). It consists of a body and a cervix, and inferiorly it joins the vagina (Fig. 5.53). Superiorly, uterine tubes project laterally from the uterus and open into the peritoneal cavity immediately adjacent to the ovaries.
The body of the uterus is flattened anteroposteriorly and, above the level of origin of the uterine tubes (Fig. 5.53), has a rounded superior end (fundus of the uterus). The cavity of the body of the uterus is a narrow slit, when viewed laterally, and is shaped like an inverted triangle, when viewed anteriorly. Each of the superior corners of the cavity is continuous with the lumen of a uterine tube; the inferior corner is continuous with the central canal of the cervix.