Preputial glands are

exocrine gland Exocrine glands are glands that secrete substances on to an epithelial surface by way of a duct. Examples of exocrine glands include sweat, salivary, mammary, ceruminous, lacrimal, sebaceous, prostate and mucous. Exocrine glands are one of ...

s that are located in the folds of skin front of the genitals of some mammals. They occur in several species, including mice, ferrets,

rhinoceros A rhinoceros (; ; ), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. (It can also refer to a member of any of the extinct species ...

es, and

even-toed ungulate The even-toed ungulates (Artiodactyla , ) are ungulates—hoofed animals—which bear weight equally on two (an even number) of their five toes: the third and fourth. The other three toes are either present, absent, vestigial, or pointing poster ...

s and produce

pheromone A pheromone () is a secreted or excreted chemical factor that triggers a social response in members of the same species. Pheromones are chemicals capable of acting like hormones outside the body of the secreting individual, to affect the behavio ...

s. The glands play a role in the urine-marking behavior of canids such as

gray wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, and gray wolves, as popularly un ...

and

African wild dog The African wild dog (''Lycaon pictus''), also called the painted dog or Cape hunting dog, is a wild canine which is a native species to sub-Saharan Africa. It is the largest wild canine in Africa, and the only extant member of the genus '' Lyca ...

s. The preputial glands of female animals are sometimes called clitoral glands. The preputial glands of male musk deer produce strong-smelling

deer musk Deer musk is a substance with a persistent odor, obtained from the caudal glands of the male musk deer. Although more commonly referred to as "musk", the term itself is often used to describe a wide variety of "musky" substances from other anim ...

which is of economic importance, as it is used in

perfume Perfume (, ; french: parfum) is a mixture of fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agreeable scent. Th ...

Human homologues

There is debate about whether humans have functional homologues to preputial glands. Preputial glands were first noted by

Edward Tyson Edward Tyson (20 January 1651 – 1 August 1708) was an English scientist and physician. He is commonly regarded as the founder of modern comparative anatomy, which compares the anatomy between species. Biography Tyson was born the son of Edward ...

and in 1694 fully described by

William Cowper William Cowper ( ; 26 November 1731 – 25 April 1800) was an English poet and Anglican hymnwriter. One of the most popular poets of his time, Cowper changed the direction of 18th-century nature poetry by writing of everyday life and sce ...

who named them Tyson's glands after Tyson. They are described as modified

sebaceous gland A sebaceous gland is a microscopic exocrine gland in the skin that opens into a hair follicle to secrete an oily or waxy matter, called sebum, which lubricates the hair and skin of mammals. In humans, sebaceous glands occur in the greatest nu ...

s located around the corona and inner surface of the prepuce of the

human penis The human penis is an external male intromittent organ that additionally serves as the urinary duct. The main parts are the root (radix); the body (corpus); and the epithelium of the penis including the shaft skin and the foreskin (prepuce) c ...

. They are believed to be most frequently found in the balanopreputial sulcus. Their secretion may be one of the components of

smegma Smegma (Ancient Greek σμῆγμα : ''smēgma'') is a combination of shed skin cells, skin oils, and moisture. It occurs in both male and female mammalian genitalia. In females, it collects around the clitoris and in the folds of the labia ...

. Some, including Satya Parkash, dispute their existence. While humans may not have true anatomical equivalents, the term may sometimes be used for tiny whitish yellow bumps occasionally found on the corona of the glans penis. The proper name for these structures is

pearly penile papules Pearly penile papules (PPP) are benign small bumps on the human penis. They vary in size from 1–4 mm, are pearly or flesh-colored, smooth and dome-topped or filiform, and appear in one or several rows around the corona, the ridge of the ...

(or hirsutoid papillomas). According to detractors, they are not glands, but mere thickenings of the skin and are not involved in the formation of smegma.

References

{{Authority control Sexual anatomy Glands

Human homologues

See also

References