The Sperm and the Egg free essay sample

It’s a very slow, very long, very exhausting journey for the sperm as they are the smallest cell in the body – they can only travel about 1/10 of an inch per minute, wiggling their tails to propel them forward millimeter by millimeter. The journey is also dangerous. It was always somewhat of a mystery how the sperm would find its way to the egg, but according to the text, recently researchers have discovered that â€Å"sperm cells possess the same kind of receptors that the nose uses to sense odors† (Rathus, 2011). So sperm may actually find their way to an egg cell by tracking its scent. From the vagina they pass through the cervix, and up into the uterus, an on into the fallopian tubes where the woman’s egg (the largest cell in the body) is waiting in only one of them. Each month a woman’s ovaries release one egg that contains her own genetic code. When we unite we will create either a male or female embryo which will grow into a baby. This process all starts with the life of a female human being. When a female child is born they are born with all the ova they will ever have throughout their life, which is about 2 million. After about 15-17 years that child is more developed and goes through a stage in their life called puberty. Only about 400, 00 of the 2 million Ova make it through this stage in a women’s life. I was lucky enough to be one of those 400, 00 who made it through. After this stage myself and the remaining ova resided in a thin capsule inside the women’s ovaries called the follicle. When the woman has reached her reproductive years and the ova have reached their full ripened potential they will be released in hopes of fertilization. There are only about 400 ripened ova that typically make it to possible fertilization. This is roughly 1ova per month (Rathus, S. A. , Nevid, J. S. , amp; Fichner-Rathus, L 2011) and today is my day, the day I have been planning my whole life. Today is the day Adam and I will embark on a journey to create a life. I have just been released and am now making my way to the fallopian tube. Once I reach the fallopian tube I will wait for Adam patiently and we will set off on our journey together. Traveling down the fallopian tube is about a 4 inches long, and will not be a quick trip, however it is vital. The fallopian tube works like a passageway to help nourish and conduct myself and other ova passing through on our way to the uterus. Cilia are hair like projections that line the fallopian tube that help me along my journey. The cilia move me through the tube about 1 inch day. Fertilization usually occurs in the infundibulum, within a couple of inches of the ovaries because ova must be fertilized within a day or two after they are released from the ovaries. Rathus, S. A. , Nevid, J. S. , amp; Fichner-Rathus, L. 2011). During which my host will begin the ovulation process, and within two weeks we will have either created a life or my host will menstruate. Adams journey will begin in the seminiferous tubules, which is located inside of male’s testes. While in this location Adam will develop which will take about 2 months for him to reach his full ripened potential. Onc e Adam is developed and ready to go he will travel to the epididymis where he will be carried to the urethra from the force of ejaculation. Once in the urethra Adam will meet a mixture of secretions that were created by his host’s prostate gland. This mixture that was created will help Adam find his way to Eve to begin their journey together. When Adam’s host is sexual aroused and is about the ejaculate his pelvic muscles will begin to contract. Adam will now leave the males body through the releasing of the mixture through the penis and inserted in the vagina. Once Adam and I meet we will begin the fertilization process. This is where we will begin to create the human life we have always dreamed about. Adam’s 23 chromosomes from the father’s sperm cell combine with the 23 chromosomes from the mother’s ovum, furnishing the standard ensemble of 46 in the offspring. Among the 23 chromosomes borne by sperm cells is one sex chromosome—an X sex chromosome or a Y sex chromosome. Ova contain X Sex chromosomes only. The union of an X sex chromosome and a Y sex chromosome Leads to the development of male offspring. Two X sex chromosomes combine to yield female offspring (Rathus, S. A. , Nevid, J. S. , amp; Fichner-Rathus, L. 2011). Adam and I have great news to present, the trip when according to plan and together we have created a baby girl. It was a long journey and at time we were not quite sure if everything was going to work in our favor. Despite it all everything worked out and we have successfully completed this mission and our goals in life. REFERENCES Rathus, S. A. , Nevid, J. S. , amp; Fichner-Rathus, L. (2011). Human sexuality in a world of diversity (8th ed. ) Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon.