198 William Montagna 



glands which parallel those of the gonads. The contradictions 

 between these reports and those of others may be the result of 

 the use of improper and insufficient materials by others. It 

 seems possible that most authors have lacked an appreciation 

 of the full range of variations which occur in the glands even 

 in the same individual. Although it is customary to believe 

 that axillary apocrine glands have a cyclic secretory activity, 

 we have not been able to detect cyclic changes in their 

 morphology. 



Usually everyone assumes that the glands become func- 

 tional at the onset of puberty. It cannot be denied that 

 gonadal maturation largely coincides with the onset of strong 

 axillary gland activity. Yet the glands of infants are clearly 

 recognizable and larger than the eccrine glands. The glands 

 of female children or juveniles which are not yet menstruating 

 are often large and functional (Klaar, 1926). The glands, 

 then, do not respond specifically to ovarian hormonal stimula- 

 tion; this is also reflected in the ageing processes. Although 

 castration and menopause bring on some ageing changes 

 quickly, many entire glandular units remain intact and 

 apparently normal for years after these events. In some of the 

 glandular units, regressive or ageing changes take place in 

 some coils of the tubule while others remain normal. Thus, 

 ovarian hormones play an obvious role in initiating their 

 maturation and maintaining in part the functional state of the 

 axillary apocrine glands, but other hormones, perhaps from 

 the adrenal cortex, are probably much more closely impli- 

 cated in this. What makes this assumption more probable 

 is the fact that in ageing men the glands show far less striking 

 regressive changes than those of women. 



REFERENCES 



Bommer, S. (1929). Acta derm. -verier eol., Stockholm, 10, 253. 



Bunting, H. (1948). Anat. Rec, 101, 5. 



Bunting, H., Wislocki, G. B., and Dempsey, E. W. (1948). Anat. Rec, 



100, 61. 

 Cavazzana, P. (1947). Riv. ital. Ginec, 30, 114. 

 Cornbleet, T. (1952). Arch. Dermal. Syph., Chicago, 65, 12. 



