Semester 2 human sexual reproduction Flashcards
Puberty
Life change when the sex glands become active
Hormones
Chemical substance produced by gland and circulated the blood
Menarche
First menstrual period
Menstrual cycle
Beginning of one period to the beginning to the next period
Asexual reproduction
reproduction that does not involve sex half-cells
Gametes
reproductive cells (sperm or ova) containing half the genetic information of normal cells
Sperm
male reproductive cell. It consists of a head, a middle section and a tail used to swim towards the egg.
Ova
female gametes or sex cells. Singular = ovum.
Zygote
cell formed by the fusion of two gametes; fertilised ovum before it starts to divide into more cells
External fertilization
reproduction where the eggs are released by the female into water and fertilised by sperm released nearby
Internal fertilization
reproduction where the egg remains in the female and is fertilised by sperm inserted into the female
Copulation or sexual intercourse
the act of inserting sperm into the female; also called sexual intercourse or mating
Meiosis
cell division process that results in new cells with half the number of chromosomes of the original cell
Epigenetics
a new branch of science that involves studying the effect of our experiences on the expression of our genetic information
Nuclear DNA
genetic material passed on from both parents, from the nucleus of both the sperm and the ovum
