408 INANITION AND MALNUTRITION 



time at which the inanition occurs. During the season of active proliferation 

 of the sex-cells, the gonads (including testes and seminal vesicles) are very 

 resistant to inanition. Under some conditions, growth and development may 

 even continue at the expense of the rest of the body, in spite of starvation. 

 Ultimately the sex glands are affected, however, and the final result is the same 

 in all cases, the testes being reduced to spermatogonia and the ovaries to 

 oogonia. Recovery is rapid upon refeeding. 



Gerhartz ('06, '08) likewise found that in Rana fusca the marked resistance 

 of the testes to inanition occurs only at a certain season, when development in 

 preparation for the breeding season may continue at the expense of the remain- 

 der of the organism. During the fall and winter, however, the fully developed 

 testes, and the accessory organs (thumb swelling and seminal vesicle) lose in 

 weight during fasting in proportion to the entire body. 



In the testes of cats at various stages of inanition, Beeli ('08) found an 

 apparently marked decrease in weight, but no indication of degenerative 

 changes at any stage. Fat droplets were noted in the peripheral portions of 

 the seminiferous tubules, and also in the intertubular tissue; but there was no 

 change in amount in the different stages of inanition. A distribution table 

 according to size of the nuclei in the primary spermatocytes shows a shrinkage 

 in diameter, the mode being 7.0-7. j/j. for the normal and 5.6-6.3^ at death 

 from starvation. 



In the mouse and white rat (Mus decumanus var. alb.), Monterosso ('12) 

 and Monterosso and Schlatter ('12) noted that the early stages of inanition 

 may even stimulate the seminiferous epithelium (increase in lipoids and mito- 

 ses). More protracted inanition causes progressive degeneration, affecting 

 first the last-formed elements, the spermatozoa; and involving progressively 

 the spermatids and spermatogonia. The cells undergo nuclear pycnosis and 

 chromatolysis, the chromatic material being ultimately transformed into 

 fatty substances for nutritive purposes. The Sertoli cells are the last affected, 

 and are very resistant; but their nuclei may disappear in extreme inanition 

 (over 200 hours). Polynuclear giant cells, and also degenerating cells, may 

 occur normally, but are much more numerous during inanition. The giant 

 cells may arise by fusion of any of the cells in the seminiferous epithelium. 

 The interstitial cells of the testis differ from the seminiferous epithelium in 

 that their fat droplets disappear immediately when inanition begins (contrary 

 to observations by earlier investigators). 



In two dogs on incomplete inanition, Po'iarkov ('13) found the amount of 

 spermatic fluid reduced in 3 months (with loss of one-third in body weight) 

 from 10 c.c. (normal) to 1 or 2 drops. Moreover the spermatozoa were 

 deformed and lessened in vitality. The testis showed many tubules with Sertoli 

 cells only. Spermatogonia were scarce, and presented signs of degeneration. 

 Upon ample refeeding, the body weight was recovered in 2 months. The 

 decrease in spermatic fluid continued at first, with gradual recovery later. 

 Since the Sertoli cells are unable to regenerate, it was assumed that the 

 regeneration was due to the few persistent spermatogonia; hence the slowness 

 of recoverv. 



