Sperm and Egg

Sperm and the Egg

Laura Smalt

PSY/265

March 8, 2015

Sarah Piwowarczyk

Sperm and the Egg

           What is the male sperm? What is a female reproductive egg? I will answer these questions throughout my discussion in my essay. The sperm is the male germ cell. The female’s reproductive egg is an embryo.

How it begins

This is the story of how Jack the sperm and Bella the egg meet for the first time. From the moment, Jack and Bella come together a new individual is made. Bella was produced at the time she was in the ovaries. For over 25 years since Bella and 400,000 follicles/potential eggs were formed. Bella is overly excited today because unlike all the others she was chosen to meet Jack. Jack feels overwhelming today because unlike all the other million sperm discharged, he will get to meet Bella finally because he makes it to the finish line before all the others. This is just the beginning of Jack and Bella’s adventure when they first came about.

 Let’s take a look at how they were created. First Jack started in the seminiferous tubules, also known as the male testes. Jack has been here maturing for many months now. Before Jacks journey begins, Jack moves to the epididymis just waiting for the release that drives him through the urethra. While in the urethra he is combined with a substance that helps him on his journey to the egg, which would be Bella. It all begins when Jack, the sperm and substance are discharged from the penis with such force caused by pelvic muscle contractions. Jack exits the penis and enters the vagina. He thinks to himself; I finally have a purpose in life, unlike the other sperm. The sperm is a little thing when examined under a microscope it looks like a tiny tadpole. Sperm is so small that you cannot see just one with the human eye. A sperm is made in the male testicles, and it takes about 72 days just to make one.

A female egg is produced in a woman’s body. Only several hundred (480) of these “eggs” will actually ever be released during reproductive years. Generally, in females, after the onset of puberty, due to the stimulation of follicular-stimulating-hormone (FSH) one “egg” per cycle matures and it is released from its ovary. One month the left ovary will release a potential egg and the next month the right ovary will release a possible egg (Standley, 2000-2015). These eggs only live from 12-24 hour’s maximum after ovulation. If a woman is trying to get pregnant it is a good idea to have sex right before ovulation, because a sperm can live inside the woman’s body for two days. The actual egg is released exactly 14 days before the female’s menstrual cycle. The inner part of the vagina consists of the cervix, the uterus, and two ovaries, that all connect to the uterus by the fallopian tube. These are all structures that make up the woman’s reproductive system.