Chapters

4.0 Learning aims, what you should already know, Introduction, delving deeper

• Learning aims
• What you should already know
• Introduction
• Delving deeper

4.1 Ovulation

• The female genital tract
• The ovary and the dominant follicle
• Maturation of the oocyte in the dominant follicle shortly before ovulation
  
  • Review: The primary oocyte
    
  • Termination of the first meiosis
    
  • The secondary oocyte
  • The role of progesterone in the follicle fluid
    
  • The follicle that is about to rupture
• Ovulation
• The acquisition of the oocyte by the fallopian tube
• The oocyte in the cloud of cumulus cells following ovulation

4.2 Getting the spermatozoa ready

• Spermatozoa maturation steps
• Processes in the male genital tract
  • Processes in the testis
  • Processes in the epididymis
• The ejaculation and the ejaculate
  • The glands involved in the ejaculation
  • The seminal plasma
  • The spermatozoa

4.3 The path of the sperm cells to the oocyte - capacitation

• Overview
• The cervical canal
• Sperm cell capacitation

4.4 The sperm cells meet the oocyte - the acrosome reaction

• Penetrating the cumulus cells
• The contact with the pellucid zone
  • The acrosome reaction
  • The penetration of the pellucid zone

4.5 The penetration of the spermatozoon into the oocyte

• The docking mechanism of the spermatozoon onto the oocyte (the key-lock principle)
• The polyspermy block
• The entry of the spermatozoon into the oocyte (impregnation)
• The termination of the second meiosis of the oocyte

4.6 The fertilization is complete.
The formation of the zygote

• Introduction into the creation and development of the pronuclei
  • The formation of the paternal pronucleus
  • The formation of the maternal pronucleus
  • Synthesis phase of the DNA in the pronuclei
• Approach of the pronuclei
• The formation of the zygote

4.7 Quiz

• Test your knowledge

4.8 Brief summary

• Summarized

4.9 Bibliography

• References