One of of the pair of folds derived from the cloacal folds which give rise to a portion of the external genitalia; in male embryos they close over the urethral plate and fuse to form the spongy (penile) urethra and ventral aspect of the penis, not including the glans; failure of fusion of the urethral folds leads to hypospadias; in female embryos they fuse only anterior to the anus and form the labia minora[MP]. [ MP:0011835 MP:anna http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urogenital_folds ]
Synonyms: urethral fold urogenital fold
Term information
- EHDAA2:0004022
- EMAPA:30888
- FMA:321919
- Wikipedia:Urogenital_folds
pheno_slim
Less commonly, urogenital fold refers to the fold in the mesonephros which is the precursor of e.g. the suspensory ligament of the ovary. This is the case in older versions of Gray's anatomy[WP]