EFFECTS OF THE PUBERTY AND THE BREEDING SEASON ON SOME ENZYMES OF THE DROMEDARY CAMEL EPIDIDYMIS: HISTOCHEMICAL AND BIOCHEMICAL STUDIES

The present study investigated the histochemical localization and activity of five different enzymes during breeding and non-breeding seasons and at pre- and post-pubertal ages in the camel epididymis. The plasma and epididymis samples were collected from a total of 40, one-humped, male camels (Camelus dromedarius) from the slaughterhouse. The samples were taken from pre-pubertal (1.0 – 3.5 years old) and post-pubertal camels (4.0 – 13.0 years old). The intensity of the studied enzymes i.e. alkaline phosphatase (ALP), acid phosphatase (ACP), glucose-6-phosphatase (G-6-Pase), adenosine triphosphatase (ATPase), and 5`-nucleotidase (5`-Nase) differed depending upon the region of the epididymis. The rutting season was associated with marked increases in the activity of ATPase in plasma and caput region, along with a significant rise in 5`-Nase activity in the caudal region; but the G-6-Pase activity did not differ significantly by season in both the plasma and epididymal tissues. The ALP and ACP activities showed slight reduction in the caudal region of the epididymis during the rutting season. With age advanced the caudal region showed significant increases in ATPase and ALP activities. The caput region showed a significant increase in 5`-Nase activity in the post-pubertal camels. The caudal region showed intensive reactivities of ATPase, ALP, and ACP more than the caput region in both seasons and ages. On the contrarily, caput region showed more activity of 5`-Nase than the caudal region. The current study concluded that the qualitative and quantitative enzymes activities of the epididymis were closely related with seasonal changes, stage of puberty, and with age advancing.