Sarco(endo)plasmic reticulum Ca(2+)-ATPase (SERCA) and plasmalemmal Ca(2+)-ATPase (PMCA) activities in cremaster muscles and sacs, which have been subjected to different autonomic tonuses, were determined and compared. Samples of cremaster muscles and sacs associated with male or female inguinal hernia, hydrocele or undescended testis were obtained from children during operations and activities of SERCA and PMCA were determined. While highest SERCA and PMCA activities were encountered among cremaster muscles and sacs associated with undescended testis, least activities were encountered among structures associated with hydrocele. The alterations in SERCA and PMCA activities in cremaster muscles associated with undescended testis appear to reflect the attempts at maintaining the levels of cytosolic calcium. Despite similar total calcium contents, lower SERCA and PMCA activities were found in sacs associated with hydrocele compared to those associated with undescended testis suggest a difference among the levels of cytosolic calcium.