Female Reproductive System Flashcards
What is an Oocyte?
The female gamete
What are the ovaries?
The female gonads
What does the female reproductive system do?
Produce gametes and hormones, as well as, support and deliver developing fetus
What is the vulva?
The external reproductive structure of a female
What is the labia minora?
The outer protection for the female reproductive system
What does the labia minora protect?
The reproductive tract and the urethra
What is the Clitoris made of?
The same cells as the glans penis, with abundant nerve innervation
What is the vaginal canal for?
The exit for the baby and entrance for reproductive tract
What is the hymen?
A thin membrane that partially covers the vagina
What is the vagina?
A muscular canal
What happens to the vagina during childbirth and intercourse?
It expands
Why does the vagina have an acidic pH?
The vagina is a self cleaning organ
How are the female gonads structured?
They are paired and the size of an almond
What connects the ovaries to the uterus?
An ovarian ligament
What covers the ovaries
The tunica albuginea
What covers the tunica albuginea?
Superficial ovarian epithelium
Where do the oocytes develop?
In the outer layer of the ovarian cortex
What is a follicle?
Supporting cells surrounding the oocyte
What does the ovarian medulla contain?
Blood vessels, lymph vessels, and nerves of the ovary
How long is the ovarian cycle?
About 28 days
True or False: The ovarian cycle and the menstrual cycle are not the same thing.
True
When does the ovarian cycle happen?
During the reproductive years, after puberty and adolescence
What are the two interrelated processes of the ovarian cycle?
Oogenesis and folliculogenesis
What is folliculogenesis?
Growth and development of follicles
What is oogenesis?
The production of the female gamete
When does oogenesis start?
Before the female is born/while the female is a fetus
What are the three phases of the ovarian cycle?
Follicular phase, ovulation, and luteal phase
What is the follicular phase?
Where the follicles mature into tertiary follicles, secrete estrogen, and get ready to release an oocyte
When does the follicular phase happen?
About the first half of the 28 days in the ovarian cycle
What is ovulation?
The release of a mature oocyte
What is the luteal phase?
The dominant follicle becomes the corpus luteum and produces progesterone
What is menopause?
When there are no more oocytes, no more reproduction, and no more cycle
What is the oogonia?
The ovarian stem cell
How does the oogonia divide?
Mitosis
When is the oogonia formed?
During fetal development
When do the oocytes stop developing?
When they start puberty
How long do oocytes last?
Until menopause
How many oocytes are in an infant, puberty, and menopause?
1-2 million (infant), 400,000 (puberty), 0 (menopause)
Where does the oocyte come from during ovulation?
The ovary
What do oocytes divide into?
Unequally, 1 mature oocyte and 3 polar bodies that get rid of other genetic information and waste product
How does the oogonium divide?
Mitosis
How does the Primary oocyte divide and what does it divide into?
Meiosis I (stops in prophase I and resumes after puberty), makes the secondary oocyte and the first and second polar bodies
How does the secondary oocyte divide and what does it divide into?
Meiosis II, makes a mature ovum and the third polar body
When does the secondary oocyte divide?
Only if penetrated by sperm
What is inside of the primary oocyte?
Large amounts of cytoplasm with nutrients to last from fertilization until implantation
How long is folliculogenesis?
Every 28 days
What is atresia?
Death of ovarian follicles (only one follicle makes it)
What are primordial follicles?
The original follicles
What do primordial follicles do?
Respond to recruitment and become primary follicles
How do primary follicles become secondary follicles?
Increase in size by getting more cells
What do the secondary follicles become after increasing in size?
Tertiary Follicle
How many tertiary follicles make it out?
1
What does the surviving tertiary follicle do?
Grow until ovulation and then expel the secondary oocyte from the ovary
How long does going from primordial follicle to tertiary follicle take?
2 months
What regulates the development of the follicle?
GnRH, LH, and FSH
What does FSH do?
Stimulate follicle growth
What does LH do?
Stimulate follicle cells to produce estradiol
What is estradiol?
A type of estrogen
What does estradiol do?
It is going to be produced enough to turn off the estrogen in the body, killing off the rest of the secondary follicles
A larger follicle produces more ________?
Estrogen
What does the production of estrogen do?
Reduce the production of GnRH, FSH, and LH
What does a decline in FSH cause?
The death of most follicles
What makes the dominant follicle dominant?
Size, number of cells, number of FSH receptors, higher estrogen production
What does the high amounts of estrogen do?
Turn the negative feedback loop into a positive feedback loop and secretes LH and FSH
What does the positive feedback loop do?
Surges LH which allows us to have ovulation
How do the follicles release the oocyte?
By using enzyme breakdown proteins in the ovary wall
What happens to the follicle after releasing the oocyte?
It collapses on the ovary and becomes the corpus luteum
What does the corpus luteum do?
Produces large amounts of progesterone
What do high levels of progesterone do?
Re-establish the negative feedback loop that is run by the hypothalamus and stop the production of LH
When must implantation happen in the luteal phase?
Within 10-12 days
What happens if implantation doesn’t happen?
The corpus luteum degrades into the lupus albicans and reproduction cannot happen
What are the uterine tubes?
A path from the ovaries to the uterus
True or false: The uterine tubes are not connected to the ovary.
True
How does the oocyte move down the uterine tubes?
Peristalsis
How does the oocyte get to the ovaries?
Carried by a current and are propelled by cilia
Cilia beat ________ with _______ estrogen concentration.
Stronger with greater
What are the three areas of the uterine tube?
Isthmus, Infundibulum, and ampulla
What is the isthmus?
A narrow end of the uterine tubes that connects to the uterus
What is the infundibulum?
The beginning of the uterine tube with a wide, distal end and fimbre to help with the current.
What is the ampulla?
The middle section where fertilization happens
What is the uterus?
A muscular organ that nourishes a growing embryo and is made to stretch during pregnancy
What are the sections of the uterus
Fundus (superior), Body (middle), Cervix (inferior)
What does the cervix do?
It projects into the vaginal canal and secretes mucus that assists sperm movement by de-coagulating
What are the layers of the ligaments that hold the uterus in place??
Perimetrium (deepest), myometrium (muscular), and endometrium (superficial)
What is the most superficial layer of the uterus?
The stratum functionalis
What does the stratum functionalis do?
It is the layer of the endometrium that sheds during menstruation
What keeps the stratum functionalis healthy for implantation?
The corpus luteum
What happens to the stratum functionalis without progesterone?
The lack of implantation causes blood vessels to constrict and rupture so O2 can’t reach the endometrial tissue
What is menses?
The shedding of dead endometrial tissues and blood
What is menarche?
The first menses after puberty
What happens in the menstrual cycle?
The uterine lining sheds, rebuilds and prepares for implantation
When does the menstrual cycle start?
First day of menses
What are the phases of the menstrual cycle?
Menses Phase, proliferated phase, secretory phase
What happens in the menses phase and how long is it?
The lining is shed, hormone levels are low; lasts about 5 days
What happens in the proliferative phase?
the endometrium rebuilds and the hormone levels rise
What happens in the secretory phase?
The progesterone from the corpus luteum starts the phase and gets the body ready for implantation
What happens if the hormones fall in the secretory phase?
Menses starts
What are the female reproduction systems accessory organs?
The breasts
What do the breasts do?
Supply milk to the infant and cause lactation
What produces milk?
Mammary glands
Where does the milk from the breasts exit?
The nipple
What do the areolar glands do?
Surround the nipple and secrete lubricating fluid to prevent chaffing
What are breasts supported by?
Suspensory ligaments
What leads to swelling and tenderness of the breasts?
Changes in hormones
During pregnancy, mammary tissue ________ and breasts ________
Develops and enlarge
What does hormonal birth control do?
Manipulate the negative feedback system
How does birth control manipulate the negative feedback system?
By providing constant hormones that prevent FSH and LH production
What happens to the uterus due to birth control?
The endometrial wall will not get as thick
True or false: New birth control pills may result in no menses.
True
What happens if you miss a day or two of birth control?
Your body will have too much hormone production and can lead to ovulation
Without chemical prompting of testosterone, what are all oocytes?
Female eggs
What is the SRY gene?
The 23rd/sex chromosome
The chromosome for female is __ and for males is __
XX and XY
What is a bipotential cell?
A cell that can be either male or female depending on the secretion of testosterone
What does the mullerian duct do?
Form the uterus, uterine tubes, and part of the vagina
What does the wolffian duct do?
Forms the epididymis, ductus deferens, and seminal vesicles
What is puberty?
The stage of sexual maturity
What happens to hormones during puberty and where do they come from?
There is an increase in hormone release from the hypothalamus, anterior pituitary, and gonads
When does LH production increase?
Around ages 8 and 9, years before physical change
What kind of hormones are your sex hormones?
Steroid hormones that are lipid soluble and come from fat.
The amount of ____ ___ is correlated with the age of puberty
Body fat
The hypothalamus ____ _________ and the gonads __ __________ during puberty.
Down regulates and upregulates
What are the signs of puberty in the male?
Increased larynx size, deeper voice, increased muscular development, hair growth
What are the signs of puberty in the female?
Fat deposited to breasts and hips, breast development, pelvis broadens, hair growth
When is the male growth spurt?
Typically around ages 11-13
How much can males grow during puberty?
About 4 inches per year and may continue on until early 20’s
When is the female growth spurt?
Around ages 9-11
How much can females grow during puberty?
About 3 inches per year for 2 or more years
