A human body cell has 46 chromosomes. How many chromosomes are in a sperm? …
Contributed by StemPy LabTry it on paper first. A hint, the key idea and the worked solution are here when you need them.
A human body cell has chromosomes.
- How many chromosomes are in a sperm?
- How many are in an ovum?
- A sperm and an ovum fuse. How many chromosomes are in the cell that results?
Need a reminder? The key ideaShow
A sperm has a head with the acrosome, a neck, a middle piece with mitochondria and a tail. An ovum has a nucleus, cytoplasm with food, a plasma membrane, the zona pellucida and the corona radiata. Textbook tests for fertile semen: at least normal shape and size, and at least vigorous motility. A sperm and an ovum are haploid, with chromosomes.
The worked solution
Have you tried it?
Work it out on paper first. It is fine to get stuck or make a mistake: that is how we learn. When you are ready, go through the solution one step at a time, and check each step against your own.
Given. Body cell: chromosomes.
Plan. Halve for a gamete. Add for the zygote.
Step 1. Sperm. .
Step 2. Ovum. .
Step 3. Zygote. .
Answer: ; ; .
Check. The zygote has the number of a body cell again, so the number stays the same from one generation to the next.
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