A human female is born with up to 500,000 gametes. About how many of these will develop to the point of being released (ovulated) from the ovaries?

1 Answer
Nov 18, 2016

Please note that human females are born with immature eggs in ovarian follicles, the eggs are arrested in meiosis. Thus we should not use the word gamete for an egg which is still in ovary. In fact, the meiotic division of egg ends only after fertilisation once it comes in contact with sperm in fallopian tube.

Explanation:

A human female is reproductively active when her menstrual cycle is operative. Generally the cycle continues for about 40 years: say from 12 to 52. Each menstrual cycle is of 28 days and generally single ovum is released per cycle, though multiple eggs may ovulate at one go but that is rare. So not more than 500 eggs are actually ever released from ovaries in a female's life. The number could even be less as ovulation stops during pregnancies.

Moreover, the eggs are released from ovary in secondary oocyte condition : meiosis is completed only when a sperm enters the egg.

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