Reproductive System

Question 1

What is a gonad? What are the female and male gonads called?

Answer 1

Organ in which sex cells develop

Ovaries and testes

Question 2

What are gametes? What are the male and female gametes called?

Answer 2

Sex cells - has 23 chromosomes

Ova and sperm

Question 3

What are some characteristics of an ovum? (Shape, size, what is in the cell)

Answer 3

Round, unable to move by itself
Contains a nucleus, often has stored food in the form of a yolk
Larger than sperm

Question 4

What are some characteristics of sperm? (Shape, size, what is in the cell)

Answer 4

Made of a head, a middle piece, and a flagellum
The head has a nucleus with the chromosomes and acrosome
The middle has mitochondria so it has the energy to move
Flagellum enables sperm to swim

Question 5

What is an acrosome?

Answer 5

On the head of the sperm

Has enzyme which help the sperm penetrate the egg

Question 6

What is the scrotum? Why is it outside the body?

Answer 6

External punch that has two testes

Outside the body - 1-2 degrees cooler, which is ideal sperm production temperature

Question 7

What are the seminiferous tubules?

Answer 7

Inside the testes where sperm is formed

Next stop: epididymis

Question 8

What is the epididymis?

Answer 8

Storage area on the upper part of each testes where the sperm mature

Question 9

What is the vas deferens?

Answer 9

Tubes that carry the sperm out. Along the way, different glands add fluids to the sperm to nourish it and provide a means of transport

Question 10

What is semen?

Answer 10

Mixture of sperm and fluids

Question 11

What three glands add fluids to semen?

Answer 11

Seminal vesicles
Cowper’s glands
Prostate gland

Question 12

What are the urethra and penis?

Answer 12

Extends from the bladder to outside via the penis, which is specialized for internal fertilization
Activated sperm is carried out of the body with involuntary muscle contraction

Question 13

What does testosterone do? Where is it made?

Answer 13

It is made in the testes

Controls male secondary sexual characteristics, like facial hair and deepening of voice

Question 14

What are follicles?

Answer 14

Small sacks that store immature ovaries

Question 15

What is ovulation?

Answer 15

When an egg matures and is released from a follicle in an ovary

Question 16

What is an oviduct?

Answer 16

Short tube from the ovary to the uterus that the egg travels in
Has cilia that sweep the egg along
Fertilization happens here

Question 17

What is the uterus?

Answer 17

Hollow thick-walled oval shaped

Where development of the fertilized egg happens

Question 18

What is the cervix?

Answer 18

Narrow neck of the uterus

Connects to the vagina

Question 19

What is the vagina/birth canal?

Answer 19

Tube leading to outside of the body

Question 20

What hormones does the ovary produce? What do they do?

Answer 20

Estrogen and progesterone

They control puberty and expression of secondary sexual characteristics like growth of body hair and mammary glands

Question 21

What happens during the follicle stage? How long does it normally last? Which hormones are present, and what do they do?

Answer 21

10-14 days
FSH - stimulates follicle to get an egg ready, which stimulates the ovary to release…
Estrogen - causes the uterus to thicken its lining and get ready to host the potential embryo

Question 22

What happens during ovulation? How long does it normally last? Which hormone is present and what does it do?

Answer 22

Egg is released to oviduct
1 day
LH - causes ovulation, and results in formation of a corpus luteum

Question 23

What happens during the corpus luteum stage? How long does it normally last? Which hormone is present and what does it do?

Answer 23

10-14 days
Yellow tissue fills the egg
Progesterone - maintains thickness of lining of uterus in case pregnancy occurs

Question 24

What happens during menstruation? How long does it normally last? What happens to the levels of the hormones present?

Answer 24

3-5 days
Lining is shed
Estrogen and Progesterone drop
FSH rises