Prostatic utricle

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Prostatic utricle

Vesiculae seminales and ampullæ of ductus deferentes, seen from the front.

The male urethra laid open on its anterior (upper) surface.
Latin	utriculus prostaticus, utriculus masculinus, vagina masculina, sinus pocularis
Gray's	subject #256 1234
Precursor	Müllerian duct
Dorlands/Elsevier	u_04/12841383

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The prostatic utricle (Latin for "pouch of the prostate") is a small indentation located in the prostatic urethra, at the apex of the urethral crest, on the seminal colliculus, laterally flanked by openings of the ejaculatory ducts. It is also known as the vagina mascalina.

It is often described as "blind", meaning that it is a duct which does not lead to any other structures.

[edit] Embryology

It serves no function. Its importance is primarily because it is the male homologue of the female uterus and vagina, derived from the Müllerian ducts. (See List of homologues of the human reproductive system for more details.) The paramesonephric (Mullerian) duct obliterates in the male, forming the prostatic utricle and in the female becomes the fallopian tube and uterus.