Birth is the only way which will preserve the human species from extinction and for the continuity of life. Although, the pregnancy and birth processes are complex, we need to know them and learn about them because of their importance. In this process the reproductive systems in the male and female are involved. They produce sex cells or gametes: the egg and the sperm. These systems are very essential to make almost identical new embryo cells to the parents, but each one of them differs from the other. The sperm carries half of the genetic information as chromosomes and transfers it to the embryo when the fertilization occurs and the egg, too. The sperm is produced by the male reproductive system after undergoing several phases or stages. Some of the male reproductive system’s organs are inside the body (internal), and the rest are external. The sperms are formed in the testicles which also release sexual hormones. Then the sperms grow in the epididymis and stay there for a few days. After that, the sperms move to the glands and form the semen via vas deferens. Finally, the ejaculation process which moves the sperms out from the body happens in the penis (Steven Dowshen, 2010). In females, the egg is considered as the feminine gamete and it carries the other half of the genes to the embryo as we mentioned before. The egg is released from the ovary, and then it is moved to the uterus through the fallopian tubes (Mangala Telang, 2007). The sperms will enter the feminine reproductive system by the vagina. In the first third of the fallopian tube, fertilization may happen. In the uterus, the zygote will be implanted (Keith L. Moore, 2008). This essay will explain the pregnancy, when the fetus starts living and to discuss some ethica...
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In the article, As Toid by the Egg by the author Susan Gaidos, the general subject matter/theme of the article is how reproduction occurs with an egg and a sperm to create new individuals. The main ideas which will be addressed in the article are how the egg and sperm reproduce, the challenges the sperm faces to get to the egg, how the egg and the sperm have evolved over time since originally the cells looked the same, proteins involved in the reproduction, and a discussion on reproductive failure. In Biology class we are learning about protein synthesis and this article discusses proteins that help with sperm and egg reproduction. The article was mainly about how an egg reproduces with sperm to create new individuals. The article also discussed how at one time the sperm and egg were the same.
Conception is the action of conceiving a child or of a child being conceived. Every human being begins life as a single cell, formed when father's sperm fertilizes mother's egg. Fertilization normally takes place in the mother's Fallopian tube, which connects the uterus (womb) with the ovary. The uterus is the size and shape of a large pear: it is made of muscle and it stretches to allow the baby's growth throughout the months of pregnancy.
The addition of a child into a family’s home is a happy occasion. Unfortunately, some families are unable to have a child due to unforeseen problems, and they must pursue other means than natural pregnancy. Some couples adopt and other couples follow a different path; they utilize in vitro fertilization or surrogate motherhood. The process is complicated, unreliable, but ultimately can give the parents the gift of a child they otherwise could not have had. At the same time, as the process becomes more and more advanced and scientists are able to predict the outcome of the technique, the choice of what child is born is placed in the hands of the parents. Instead of waiting to see if the child had the mother’s eyes, the father’s hair or Grandma’s heart problem, the parents and doctors can select the best eggs and the best sperm to create the perfect child. Many see the rise of in vitro fertilization as the second coming of the Eugenics movement of the 19th and early 20th century. A process that is able to bring joy to so many parents is also seen as deciding who is able to reproduce and what child is worthy of birthing.
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This means that all the sperm in males and eggs in females are produced from meiosis. Sperm and egg cells are haploid cells-they contain only one of each type of chromosome. Meiosis actually starts with a diploid cell that undergoes two divisions; the end products are four gametes, all genetically different. Meiosis is known as a reduction division because the daughter cells always contain half the amount of chromosomes as the diploid beginner cell. Chromosomes come in pairs and these pairs are called homologous pairs. Homologous chromosomes mean that both of the chromosomes in the pair have the same gene sequence. Human somatic cells(diploid) contain 46 chromosomes consisting of 23 homologous pairs; therefore, human gametes, which are haploid, have 23 total chromosomes-one from each homologous pair. Just like in mitosis, meiosis undergoes all of the same phases. However, because meiosis involves two divisions, the cell goes through all the phases twice. When referring to the first time the cell undergoes a phase, we say 1, and when referring to the second time, we say 2. For example, when a cell starts prophase the first time in meiosis, we say it is going through prophase 1(P1). Also, there are some differences in the process itself. During P1, homologous chromosomes exchange a section of themselves in what is known as crossing over. This provides a source of genetic variation since part of each chromosome switched places with each other, thus making both chromosomes distinct from the original. Another important difference to know is that in anaphase 1, the doubled chromosomes are not separated into sister chromatids. This doesn’t happen until A2 to ensure that each of the four gametes receives one of each kind of chromosome. There are many key points to understand about meiosis. The first being that cells in meiosis do not go through interphase twice. Interphase is a “one-time” thing; DNA
A male makes one thousand new sperm per second, that is two trillion over a lifetime and they all are one of a kind, very unique. A woman has all her eggs from birth. The process starts out as meiosis, this is where 30,000 genes are then there are forty six chromosomes. Twenty three comes from your mother and twenty three come from your father, they only come together in meiosis in pairs, but they are not the same. Chromosomes make an exact copy of themselves then they condense making an X shape, chromosomes get a partner then embrace. The chromosomes cling close together in big chunks, the cell then divides pulling the pair apart with twenty three chromosomes. The cell alone is incomplete, but holds many promises. Every cell holds di...
From the moment sperm and egg meet, many processes begin to happen. Each of these processes are the start of forming all of the parts that make up a human being. Most people wonder if their new baby will have the eyes of the mother or the father, be tall like Grandpa or short like Aunt Kim. Be an excellent athlete like Uncle Tom or have the ability to be a rocket scientist like Grandma Sue. New parents also spend a lot of time thinking about if they will be having a boy or a girl. Twenty-two pairs of autosomes is how many it takes to form a whole homo sapien. In addition, one pair of sex chromosomes is needed. These will either be in the form of two X chromosomes to form a female or an X and a Y chromosome to form a male. This pair of sex chromosomes is responsible for much more than just the external sex organs. They control hormones, the full internal reproductive structures, and the sex discernment within the brain.
The merger of two germinal cells, one being a sperm cell and the other being an egg cell, is complete within twelve hours, at which time the egg is fertilized and becomes a zygote containing forty six chromosomes required to create a new human life. It is during this remarkable process when conception occurs. Conception confirms life and makes that undeveloped human one of a kind (Rorvik & Shettles, 1983, p. 16). Many researchers, as well as scientists, identify the first moments of life as the instant when a sperm cell unites with an ovum, o...
“How far along in a pregnancy is it until the unborn child is considered human? At what point does it receive basic rights?” These propositions have been the topic of one the most controversial discussions of the century. Based on the research I have completed on this topic, it has been made indisputable to me that life begins at the moment of conception.
Foht, Brendan P. "Three-Parent Embryos Illustrate Ethical Problems with Technologies." Medical Ethics, edited by Noël Merino, Greenhaven Press, 2015. Current Controversies. Opposing Viewpoints in Context,
The female reproductive systems is made of 9 parts. The sex cell for the female reproductive system is called the egg or ovum. The egg spends it’s dormant life in the ovaries until it is released. The egg has 23 chromosomes within it. The ovaries have two goals: to create and house eggs and the release the female sex hormones, estrogen and progesterone. The fallopian tubes are what the egg travels through to reach the uterus. Fallopian tubes contain tiny hair-like structures called cilia; the cilia allows for mobility of the egg. The fallopian tube is roughly the size of 2 hairs, and is the site of where ectopic pregnancies happen. The process of the egg getting released from the ovaries through the fallopian tubes is called ovulation. Ovulation happens on the 14th day of the menstruation cycle The uterus is where the egg goes to after it travels through the fallopian tubes. The developing baby is held and nourished in the uterus. When the uterus is empty, it’s roughly the size of a fist but expands one an embryo starts to develop. The endometrium is the lining of the uterine wall. It’s used to protect the fetus. When the egg isn’t fertilized, menstruation ha...
Fertilization occurs when the sperm from the male and the ovum from the female combine to create a zygote. The zygote will then go through a gestational period which consists of three different stages. The first stage is the germinal stage and it starts from conception and ends at two weeks, during this stage the zygote divides and becomes much more complex and then implants into the uterine wall where it will then go on to the second stage. The second stage is the embryonic stage, this stage starts at two weeks and ends at eight weeks. During the embryonic stage the zygote has become an embryo and the organs and major body systems form and develop very rapidly. This is one of the most critical periods for physical development, the embryo is very sensitive to many different types of influences. The third and final stage of the gestational period is the fetal stage, this stage starts at eight weeks and ends at birth. During this stage the fetus grows approximately twenty times its previous length and the organs and body systems continue to develop becoming more complex and becomes ready for survival outside of the womb. Children grow the fastest during the first three years of their life, and they will never grow this rapidly again. As the child grows the child will go through various stages of physical development such as puberty and sexual maturity. After the first few
Fertilization (conception) is the moment in which the sperm cell enters the oocyte and merges with it. From this moment, the cell division begins: at each division the number of cells is doubled in the fertilized egg. About two days after fertilization, the fertilized egg migrates the remaining way of the fallopian tube down to the uterus, where the implantation takes place. So that it can even come to the fertilization, some conditions are necessary, which will all together lead to the sperm and egg cell coming together. This is how fertilization works: After ovulation, the ovum migrates in the fallopian tube towards the uterus. In the next twelve to 24 hours she is fertile. The sperm arriving at the ovum try to drill through its shell. Fertilization