Female Reproductive System
The first thing to consider regarding reproduction from a male, or female point, are the wise words of the Irish priest, who was in charge of my year in high school:
“Sex tis a doity ting, yer should be ashamed of yerself so yer should, unless yer married and even den, never on da Sabbath!”
To be fair though, he was keen on his whiskey and would often be found preaching this message to the coat stand in the corner of the room.
Anyway, lets get immersed in the female reproductive system…no, I mean lets roll our sleeves up and…no, wait, lets really get inside…no, wait, oh just read on while I begin the formal complaints procedure on myself.
We probably all know that the male penis is inserted into the female vagina, where it releases lots of sperm, which then move to the female egg (or ovum), which a sperm then fertilises and makes a baby. – I know, doesn’t it sound sexy!
So the ovum is a key part of this subject and this is produced on a monthly basis. If the ovum is not fertilised, then it is got rid of during a period of menstruation, which also causes vaginal bleeding. To start the process, oestrogen and progesterone levels are low and so follicle stimulating hormone and luteinising hormone are released. Follicle stimulating hormone causes follicles to develop in the ovary, one of which takes over and continues to grow. This releases oestrogen, which slows the further release of follicle stimulating hormone and increases the release of luteinising hormone, which inhibits further follicle growth. The follicle ruptures, releasing one ovum which is swept into the fallopian tube – this is termed ovulation.
The larger amounts of oestrogen cause the vaginal secretions of cervical mucous to increase and become clear and also the opening to the cervix (called the OS) dilates and gets more open. These actions may later allow the sperm to move more easily through the vagina, uterus and fallopian tube, to reach the ovum. The larger amounts of oestrogen and also progesterone cause the lining of the uterus to thicken, which would be useful if the ovum becomes fertilised. If the ovum is not fertilised, levels of oestrogen and progesterone reduce, causing blood vessels in the uterus lining to break, causing vaginal bleeding (menstruation). The whole cycle is then ready to begin once again…Hurah for the wonders of the menstrual cycle!
So we now know how the ovum gets to where it should be (in the fallopian tube). We also know that during sex, sperm containing semen is released into the vagina (unless the penis has been prepared with a complimentary condom). From there the semen moves through the uterus and into the fallopian tube. If one of the 300 million or so sperm (for each ejaculation) comes in contact with the ovum, it enters the cell membrane of the ovum, allowing the genetic material of the male and female to combine and form a “zygote”. This then moves to the uterus before being implanted in the lining of the uterus, when it will then develop into an unborn baby.
*It is worth noting, that like the sperm, the ovum only contains half of the genetic material required to make a baby. Therefore, when the sperm and ovum combine, they each contribute half of the genetic material required, meaning that you are half of your mom and half of your dad (lets hope you didn’t get your mom’s top half and your dads bottom half!).
“Sex tis a doity ting, yer should be ashamed of yerself so yer should, unless yer married and even den, never on da Sabbath!”
To be fair though, he was keen on his whiskey and would often be found preaching this message to the coat stand in the corner of the room.
Anyway, lets get immersed in the female reproductive system…no, I mean lets roll our sleeves up and…no, wait, lets really get inside…no, wait, oh just read on while I begin the formal complaints procedure on myself.
We probably all know that the male penis is inserted into the female vagina, where it releases lots of sperm, which then move to the female egg (or ovum), which a sperm then fertilises and makes a baby. – I know, doesn’t it sound sexy!
So the ovum is a key part of this subject and this is produced on a monthly basis. If the ovum is not fertilised, then it is got rid of during a period of menstruation, which also causes vaginal bleeding. To start the process, oestrogen and progesterone levels are low and so follicle stimulating hormone and luteinising hormone are released. Follicle stimulating hormone causes follicles to develop in the ovary, one of which takes over and continues to grow. This releases oestrogen, which slows the further release of follicle stimulating hormone and increases the release of luteinising hormone, which inhibits further follicle growth. The follicle ruptures, releasing one ovum which is swept into the fallopian tube – this is termed ovulation.
The larger amounts of oestrogen cause the vaginal secretions of cervical mucous to increase and become clear and also the opening to the cervix (called the OS) dilates and gets more open. These actions may later allow the sperm to move more easily through the vagina, uterus and fallopian tube, to reach the ovum. The larger amounts of oestrogen and also progesterone cause the lining of the uterus to thicken, which would be useful if the ovum becomes fertilised. If the ovum is not fertilised, levels of oestrogen and progesterone reduce, causing blood vessels in the uterus lining to break, causing vaginal bleeding (menstruation). The whole cycle is then ready to begin once again…Hurah for the wonders of the menstrual cycle!
So we now know how the ovum gets to where it should be (in the fallopian tube). We also know that during sex, sperm containing semen is released into the vagina (unless the penis has been prepared with a complimentary condom). From there the semen moves through the uterus and into the fallopian tube. If one of the 300 million or so sperm (for each ejaculation) comes in contact with the ovum, it enters the cell membrane of the ovum, allowing the genetic material of the male and female to combine and form a “zygote”. This then moves to the uterus before being implanted in the lining of the uterus, when it will then develop into an unborn baby.
*It is worth noting, that like the sperm, the ovum only contains half of the genetic material required to make a baby. Therefore, when the sperm and ovum combine, they each contribute half of the genetic material required, meaning that you are half of your mom and half of your dad (lets hope you didn’t get your mom’s top half and your dads bottom half!).