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An oocyte (/ ˈ oʊ ə s aɪ t /, oöcyte, or ovocyte is a female gametocyte or germ cell involved in reproduction. In other words, it is an immature ovum, or egg cell. An oocyte is produced in a female fetus in the ovary during female gametogenesis. The female germ cells produce a primordial germ cell (PGC), which then undergoes mitosis ...
For fertilization to occur, sperm cells rely on hyaluronidase (an enzyme found in the acrosome of spermatozoa) to disperse the corona radiata from the zona pellucida of the secondary (ovulated) oocyte, thus permitting entry into the perivitelline space and allowing contact between the sperm cell and the nucleus of the oocyte.
Mammalian oocytes are maintained in meiotic prophase arrest for a very long time—months in mice, years in humans. Initially, the arrest is due to lack of sufficient cell cycle proteins to allow meiotic progression. However, as the oocyte grows, these proteins are synthesized, and meiotic arrest becomes dependent on cyclic AMP. [4]
Pregnancy symptoms may be categorized based on trimester as well as region of the body affected. Each pregnancy can be quite different and many people do not experience the same or all of the symptoms. If a person is concerned about their symptoms they should be encouraged to speak with an appropriate healthcare professional. [1]
Fertilization was not understood in antiquity. Hippocrates believed that the embryo was the product of male semen and a female factor. Aristotle held that only male semen gave rise to an embryo, while the female only provided a place for the embryo to develop, [5] a concept he acquired from the preformationist Pythagoras.
Oocytes are then able to mature within the follicle through meiosis. In humans with ovaries, this process occurs continuously, as they are born with a finite number of follicles (between 500,000-1,000,000 follicles), and about 99% of follicles undergo atresia. [4] Only one follicle will be mature enough to release an egg and may be fertilized. [5]
If no fertilization occurs, the oocyte will degenerate between 12 and 24 hours after ovulation. [18] Approximately 1–2% of ovulations release more than one oocyte. This tendency increases with maternal age. Fertilization of two different oocytes by two different spermatozoa results in fraternal twins. [10]
Oocyte selection is a procedure that is performed prior to in vitro fertilization, in order to use oocytes with maximal chances of resulting in pregnancy. In contrast, embryo selection takes place after fertilization. Not all women can conceive naturally, leaving them with a need for technologies and research that can help them have children.