Rat Reproductive System Dissection

Pre-lab Prepare the dissection tray and equipment. Put on your gloves. Retrieve your rat from the tray in your cabinet. Remove the skin from around your rat and place it in your zip-lock bag. Lay the rat in the dissection tray ventral side up.

Sharing Your Rat While one group at the table dissects the female rat, the other group will dissect the male rat. After you complete your section of the lab report, switch rats. Female begins at slide 4. Male begins at slide 13.

Female Structures- Ovaries Fallopian tube Ovary Look for the ovaries embedded in adipose tissue.

Female Structures- Ovaries In the rat, the ovaries are located at the superior end of the uterine horn. In each picture, the probe is pointing to the ovaries.

Female structures- Ovaries Note the blisters on the ovaries. These may be developing follicles which contain the secondary oocyte.

Female Structures: Uterus This is the V-shaped uterine horn in a rat that is not pregnant

Female Structures: Uterus The uterine horns meet at a structure called the "body of the uterus". The body opens at the cervix into the vagina. Note the bladder in the foreground.

Female structures: Uterus This is the V shaped uterine horn in a pregnant rat. The rat embryos are developing in these horns.

Female Structures- Uterus A uterine horn containing well developed embryos.

Female Structures that Support the Developing Embryo

A very immature embryo

Male Structures-Scrotum Scrotum

Scrotum- Testes Cut open the scrotum and scrotal sacs to reveal the epididymis and testes. Epididymis Testes

Male Structures- Vas Deferens

Male Structures- Seminal Vesicles Seminal vesicle

Male Structures- Prostate Gland The rat has two prostate glands located under the bladder. A male human only has one prostate gland. bladder

Male Structures- Penis If it has not already been done, cut anteriorly into the urogenitalopening. This will expose the penis.

Clean-up Place your rat in your zip- lock bag and throw the bag with the rat in the garbage. No tears please. Clean and dry your instruments. Forever