Genital tubercle

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Genital tubercle
Stages in the development of the external sexual organs in the male and female.
Gray's subject #252 1213
Gives rise to genital swelling, mons pubis, clitoris, penis
Dorlands/Elsevier t_21/12827779

A genital tubercle is a body of tissue which forms in the ventral, caudal region of mammalian embryos of both sexes, and eventually develops into a phallus. In the human fetus the genital tubercle develops around week 4 of gestation, and by week 9 becomes recognizably either a clitoris or penis.

The genital tubercle is sensitive to dihydrotestosterone and rich in 5-alpha-reductase, so that the amount of fetal testosterone present after the second month is a major determinant of phallus size at birth.

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