reproductive system Flashcards
(94 cards)
what are the gonads and what do they do?
-testes
-produce sperm and secrete hormones
what does the system of ducts include?
-ductus epididymis
-ductus deferens
-ejaculatory duct
-urethra
what does the system of ducts do?
-transports and stores sperm, assists in their maturation, conveys them to the exterior
what do accessory sex gland include?
-seminal vesicles
-prostate gland
-bulbourethral glands
what are the supporting structures of the male reproductive system and what do they do?
-scrotum-supports testes
-penis-delivers sperm into the female reproductive tract
what is the scrotum?
-a cutaneous out pouching of the abdomen that supports the testes
what temp does normal sperm production and survival require?
-a temp 2-3*c below core body temp
what are the two halves the scrotal septum divides the scrotum into?
-cremaster muscle
-dartos muscle
what does the cremaster muscle do?
-contracts to elevate the testes on exposure to cold and moves the testes close to the pelvic cavity (skeletal muscle fibres)
what does the dartos muscle do?
-contracts and makes the scrotal skin wrinkle minimising heat loss (smooth muscle fibres)
what are the testes/testicles?
-paired oval glands that descend from the abdomen to the scrotum during the 7th month of fetal development
what is the structure of the testes/testicles?
-it is covered by a fibrous tissue called tunic albuginea
-invaginations form 200-300 compartments called lobules
-each lobule is filled with 2 or 3 seminiferous tubules (spermatogenesis)
what is the pathway for sperm transport?
-seminifrous tubule
-straight tubule
-rete testis
-epididymis (head, body,tail)
-ductas vas deferens
-exit through the spermatic cord which also contain blood vessels and nerves
what are the cells of the testes?
-leydig cells (interstitial endocrinocytes)
-large sertoli cells
what do leydig cells do?
-they are found in spaces between adjacent seminiferous tubules which secrete the male hormone testosterone
where are large Sertoli cells found?
-embedded among the spermatogenic cells in the tubules
what do large Sertoli cells do?
-form the blood testes barrier
-nourish spermatocytes
-mediate the effect of testosterone and FSH on spermatogenesis
-phagocytose excess spermtids
-secrete the hormone inhibin which helps regulate sperm production by inhibiting the production of FSH
what does spermatogenesis do?
-produces haploid sperm (one set of 23 chromosomes) from diploid spermatogonia
how many days does the process of spermatogenesis take?
74 days
what happens in meiosis one? (reduction division)
- homologous pairs line up to form a tetrad (four chromatids from each homologous pair)
-the two cells formed by this first nuclear division (meiosis 1) are called secondary spermatocytes
-each of the 23 chromosomes are still made up of 2 chromatids attached at a centromere
what happens in meiosis 2 (equatorial division)?
- 2 chromatids separate (no replication of DNA)
-this results in 4 spermatids-each is haploid and unique,there is 50% X chromosome and 50% Y chromosome
-spermiogenesis happens
-spermination happens
what is spermiogenesis?
-involves the development of spermatids into sperm,acrosome(head) and flagella (tail) form and the mitochondria multiply
what is spermination?
-the release from connections to sertoli cells
what is sperm morphology?
-how sperm are adapted for reaching and penetrating a secondary oocyte