Fascinating Education Script

Fascinating Anatomy & Physiology

Lesson 12: Genital System

Slide 1: Introduction

Slide 2: Meiosis
The genital system is designed to ensure the survival of
the human race by mixing up the gene pool through a
process called meiosis.

Meiosis differs from mitosis. In mitosis, every cell in the

body, except the sperm and egg cells, contains a set of 23
chromosomes from the father and 23 from the mother.
Only 2 pairs of chromosomes are shown here.

When a cell undergoes mitosis, it simply duplicates its 23 pairs of chromosomes. Each
duplicated chromosome lines up along the midline and pulls apart to make two identical cells.
Each daughter cell contains the exact same 23 pairs of chromosomes that the parent cell had.

In meiosis, the parent cell also duplicates its chromosomes, but instead of each duplicated
chromosome lining up along the midline, each pair of duplicated chromosomes lines up along
the midline. This is the first mixing of the genes because in one pair of duplicated
chromosomes, the mother may be to the left of the midline and the father to the right of
midline. In another pair of duplicated chromosomes the mother may be to the right of midline
and the father to the left of midline.

The second mixing of the genes occurs while the mothers and fathers duplicated
chromosomes are lined up along the midline. The mothers and fathers chromosomes overlap
a bit and exchange some of their chromosomes, a process called crossing over.

The 2 daughter cells no longer have the same chromosomes as the parent cell, because each of
the 23 pairs of chromosomes is either from the mother or the father, but not both as it was in
mitosis. Moreover, bits of each chromosome may contains genetic instructions from the
opposite parent.

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Now, when the 2 daughter cells undergo another cell split, the chromosomes are again mixed
because each of the four daughter cells ends up with a different mixture of 23 chromosomes
from one or the other parent.

In the testes, these 4 daughter cells develop into sperm cells. In the ovaries, they develop into
eggs. When the sperm and egg unite, the embryo will have a full set of 23 chromosomes from
the mother and 23 from the father, 46 in total.

Slide 3: Testicular Descent

During fetal development, the ovaries and testes both
start out in the lower abdomen, but because sperm need
a temperature lower than body temperature in order to
develop, the testes leave the abdomen by descending
through the inguinal canal in the lower abdominal wall
into the scrotum, dragging with them in the spermatic
cord all the blood vessels and nerves that were supplying
the testes in the abdomen.

Doctors can feel the opening to the inguinal canal, the inguinal ring, through the scrotum by
sticking their finger up into the scrotum.

Slide 4: Seminifierous Tubules

A testis has two important structures: seminiferous
tubules inside the testis and an epididymis attached to it.

Inside the tightly packed seminiferous tubules is where

sperm cells undergo meiosis and aquire a tail and
mitochondria to supply the sperm cells with the energy
needed to swim to the egg.

With the help of Sertoli cells, developing sperm cells pack

their 23 chromosomes into their tiny nucleus. The Sertoli cells also help the sperm cells to grow
a long tail to help propel themselves forward.

Sertoli cells are controlled by follicle stimulating hormone from the pituitary gland.

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The bulge around the neck of sperm cells is
mitochondria to provide the energy needed by the tails
to propel the sperm up into the fallopian tubes and
fertilize the egg.

Outside the seminiferous tubules, in between

neighboring seminiferous tubules, are interstitial cells.
When stimulated by luteinizing hormone from the
anterior pituitary gland, interstitial cells produce
testosterone.

The sperm cells emerging from the seminiferous tubules

have the structures needed to swim, but not the skills.
They develop the skills to swim during their slow
meander through the epididymis, which lies outside
each testis and extends from the top to the bottom of
the testis.

The sperm cells leaving the bottom of the epididymis

are ready to fertilize an egg, but they are still in the scrotal sac. To be ejaculated from the penis,
the sperm must travel upward through the vas deferens to the penile urethra.

Slide 5: Epididymis and Vas Deferens

The vas deferens passes upward in the spermatic cord, through the inguinal canal, which is not
shown, back into the lower abdomen. The vas deferens then hooks around the ureter
descending from the kidney to the bladder. It then joins the urinary urethra, just as the urethra
is leaving the bottom of the bladder. The urethra passes
right through the prostate gland.

Three glands contribute fluid and nutrients for the sperm

cells passing through the urethra: the left and right
seminal vesicle glands lying behind the bladder, the single
prostate gland lying underneath the bladder, and the left
and right bulbourethral glands beneath the prostate
gland.

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Slide 6: Egg Development and Fertilization
The genital system in women includes the breasts,
ovaries, fallopian tubes, uterus, and vagina.

The ovaries are suspended in the middle of the pelvis by a

thick, broad membrane called the broad ligament, and by
the strong ovarian and suspensory ligaments. Like the
testes, the ovaries are encased in a sensitive covering.

On about day 14 of a womans monthly cycle, in response

to follicle stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, and
rising estrogen levels, the ovary releases a haploid egg
containing 23 chromosomes into the opening to the
fallopian tube, where it is swept into the fallopian tube.

Inside the fallopian tube sperm cells fertilize the egg. The
developing embryo reaches various stages as it migrates
down the fallopian tube to implant as a blastocyst in the
inner wall, or endometrium, of the uterus.

In anticipation of the egg being fertilized, follicle

stimulating hormone has been preparing the uterus for implantation by thickening the
endometrium with extra blood vessels, so that if the egg is fertilized by a sperm cell, the
fertilized egg can embed itself in the fluffy uterine wall. Then, with the help of luteinizing
hormone, the developing embryo can start growing a placenta to absorb nutrients from all the
new blood vessels in the uterine wall.

If the egg is not fertilized by a sperm cell, the inside lining

of the uterus is shed as monthly menstruation and the
whole process starts all over.

Slide 7: Placenta
Since the developing fetus is suspended in amniotic fluid,
it does not breathe oxygen. Instead, the umbilical artery
absorbs oxygen from the mothers blood in the placenta.

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Arteries from the mother supply oxygenated blood to a
lake of blood inside the placenta. Even though this blood is
outside of an actual artery and somewhat stagnant, it
does not clot.

The fetus umbilical artery carrying deoxygenated blood

enters this pool of placental blood, and oxygen diffuses
from the mothers pool of blood into the fetus blood
headed back to the fetus through the umbilical vein.

Arteries normally carry oxygenated blood, so delivering deoxygenated blood through the
umbilical artery and returning the oxygenated blood through the umbilical vein is contrary to all
other arteries and veins in the body.

Slide 8: Mitochondrial DNA

The energy sperm use to swim up the fallopian tube to the
egg is provided by the mitochondria wrapped around the
neck of each sperm cell. Inside those mitochondria, and all
other mitochondria in the body, is a section of DNA
completely separate from the DNA in the nucleus of every
cell in the body.

When a sperm fertilizes an egg, only the sperm head, not

the mitochondria, enters the egg. Since there are no mitochondria in the head of the sperm
cell, the father contributes no mitochondrial DNA to the developing embryo. All the DNA in our
mitochondria, therefore, is from our mother.

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