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A gonad, sex gland, or reproductive gland [1] is a mixed gland and sex organ that produces the gametes and sex hormones of an organism. Female reproductive cells are egg cells, and male reproductive cells are sperm. [2] The male gonad, the testicle, produces sperm in the form of spermatozoa. The female gonad, the ovary, produces egg cells
The development and maturation of sex cells also takes place during meiosis. Gametogenesis is also the process of formation in male and female gametes that occur in the gonads (ovary and testis). Both male and female produce gametes. Male gametocytes are called spermatocytes and female gametocytes are called oocytes.
The gonadal ridge, in turn, develops into a gonad. This is a testis in the male and an ovary in the female. At first, the mesonephros and gonadal ridge are continuous, but as the embryo grows the gonadal ridge gradually becomes pinched off from the mesonephros. However, some cells of mesonephric origin join the gonadal ridge.
[39] [41] The female external sex organs are the vulva (labia, clitoris, and vestibule). [42] [39] The male external genitalia include the penis and scrotum that contains the testicles. The testicle is the gonad, the sex gland that produces the sperm cells. Unlike the egg cells in the female, sperm cells are produced throughout life.
The Sex-determining Region of the Y chromosome directs male development in mammals by inducing the somatic cells of the gonadal ridge to develop into a testis, rather than an ovary. [10] Sry is expressed in a small group of somatic cells of the gonads and influences these cells to become Sertoli cells (supporting cells in testis). Sertoli cells ...
Anisogamy is the form of sexual reproduction that involves the union or fusion of two gametes which differ in size and/or form. [12] The smaller gamete is considered to be male (a sperm cell), whereas the larger gamete is regarded as female (typically an egg cell, if non-motile).
Sex specification of the germ cells requires the repression of pluripotency [10] and relies on the communication between the somatic cells of the gonads and germ cells. The mechanisms for male and female differentiation are markedly different, since a population of sperm producing spermatogonia are retained throughout development and into adult ...
Sex cords are embryonic structures which eventually will give rise (differentiate) to the adult gonads (reproductive organs). [1] They are formed from the genital ridges - which will develop into the gonads - in the first 2 months of gestation (embryonic development) which depending on the sex of the embryo will give rise to male or female sex ...