Bulbourethral gland

Bulbourethral gland
Male Anatomy
The deeper branches of the internal pudendal artery. (Bulbourethral gland labeled at center left.)
Latin	glandulæ bulbourethrales
Gray's	subject #264 1253
Artery	Artery of the urethral bulb
Precursor	Urogenital sinus
MeSH	Bulbourethral+Glands

A bulbourethral gland, also called a Cowper's gland for anatomist William Cowper, is one of two small exocrine glands present in the reproductive system of human males. They are homologous to Bartholin's glands in females.

Location

Bulbourethral glands are located posterior and lateral to the membranous portion of the urethra at the base of the penis, between the two layers of the fascia of the urogenital diaphragm, in the deep perineal pouch. They are enclosed by transverse fibers of the sphincter urethrae membranaceae muscle.

Structure

The bulbourethral glands are compound tubulo-alveolar glands, each approximately the size of a pea. They are composed of several lobules held together by a fibrous covering. Each lobule consists of a number of acini, lined by columnar epithelial cells, opening into a duct that joins with the ducts of other lobules to form a single excretory duct. This duct is approximately 2.5 cm long and opens into the urethra at the base of the penis. The glands gradually diminish in size with advancing age.^[1]

Function

During sexual arousal each gland produces a clear, viscous secretion known as pre-ejaculate. This fluid helps to lubricate the urethra for spermatozoa to pass through, neutralizing traces of acidic urine in the urethra,^[2] and helps flush out any residual urine or foreign matter. It is possible for this fluid to pick up sperm, remaining in the urethral bulb from previous ejaculations, and carry them out prior to the next ejaculation. The Cowper's gland also produces some amount of prostate-specific antigen (PSA), and Cowper's tumors may increase PSA to a level that makes prostate cancer suspected.^{[citation needed]}

Gallery

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  Structure of the penis

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  Male pelvic organs seen from right side.

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  Vertical section of bladder, penis, and urethra.

See also

• List of homologues of the human reproductive system

Notes

1. ^ Gray's Anatomy, 38th edn, p 1861.
2. ^ Chughtai, Bilal; Ahmed Sawas, Rebecca L. O'Malley, Rohan R. Naik, S. Ali Khan, Srinivas Pentyala (April 2005). "A Neglected Gland: A Review of Cowper's Gland". International Journal of Andrology (Blackwell Publishing) 28 (2): 74–7. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2605.2005.00499.x. ISSN 0105-6263. PMID 15811067. http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/118692977/abstract.