OVUM

All sexually reproducing organisms make sex cells called gametes. The gamete, produced by
the female is called the egg or ovum. It joins with the sperm, the male gamete, during
fertilization to form the embryo, which will eventually grow into a new organism. Gametes are
the only type of cells that are haploid. They contain only one set of chromosomes, which is
half of the genetic material required to make an organism. Ova are produced by sexually
reproducing animals, protists, fungi and flowering plants and ferns. In animals, they are
produced by follicle cells in the ovaries of the female. In plants, egg cells are produced by
ovules found inside the ovary (the part which then becomes the fruit).

DESCRIPTION

Despite its large size - it's the only animal cell you can see with the naked eye and most of the
egg cell is padding, layers of which protect the valuable information in its nucleus. The cell
substance is known as the yolk or ooplasm, the nucleus as the germinal vesicle, and the
nucleolus as the germinal spot. The ovum is enclosed within a thick, transparent envelope,
the zona striata or zona pellucida, adhering to the outer surface of which are several layers of
cells, derived from those of the follicle and collectively constituting the corona radiata.

Egg production takes place in the ovaries. It takes several steps to make an egg:

1. Before birth, special cells in the ovaries go through mitosis (cell division), producing
identical cells.

2. The daughter cells then start to divide by meiosis. But they only go through the first of
the two cell divisions of meiosis at that time. They go through the second stage of cell
division after the female goes through puberty.

3. In a mature female, an egg develops in an ovary about once a month. The drawing
below shows how this happens

Yolk - The yolk comprises the cytoplasm of the ordinary animal cell with its spongioplasm and
hyaloplasm; this is frequently termed the formative yolk; the nutritive yolk, which consists of
numerous rounded granules of fatty and albuminoid substances imbedded in the cytoplasm. In
the mammalian ovum the nutritive yolk is extremely small in amount, and is of service in
nourishing the embryo in the early stages of its development. The nutritive yolk not only varies
in amount, but in its mode of distribution within the egg; thus, in some animals it is almost
uniformly distributed throughout the cytoplasm; in some it is centrally placed and is surrounded
by the cytoplasm; in others it is accumulated at the lower pole of the ovum, while the cytoplasm
occupies the upper pole. A centrosome and centriole are present and lie in the immediate
neighborhood of the nucleus.

Corona radiata - When the spermatozoa first encounter the ovulated egg in the ampullary part
of the uterine tube, they are confronted by the corona radiata and some remnants of the cumulus
oophorus, which represents the outer layer of the egg complex. The corona radiata is a highly
cellular layer with an intercellular matrix consisting of proteins and a high concentration of
carbohydrates, especially hyaluronic acid. It is widely believed that hyaluronidase emanating
from the sperm head plays a major role in penetration of the corona radiata, but the active
swimming movements of the spermatozoa are also important.

Zona pellucida- The zona pellucida, which is 13 mm thick in humans, consists principally
glycoproteins, combine to form basic units that polymerize into long filaments. These filaments
are periodically linked by cross bridges of glycoproteins. After they have penetrated the corona
radiata, spermatozoa bind tightly to the zona pellucida by means of the plasma membrane of
the sperm head. Spermatozoa bind specifically to a sialic acid molecule, which is the terminal
part of a sequence of four sugars at the end of O-linked oligosaccharides that are attached to
the polypeptide core. Molecules on the surface of the sperm head are specific binding sites for
the sperm receptors on the zona pellucida. On binding to the zona pellucida, mammalian
spermatozoa undergo the acrosomal reaction. The essence of the acrosomal reaction is the
fusion of parts of the outer acrosomal membrane with the overlying plasma membrane and the
pinching off of fused parts as small vesicles. This results in the liberation of the multitude of
enzymes that are stored in the acrosome. An initiating event of the acrosomal reaction is a
massive influx of calcium (Ca2+) through the plasma membrane of the sperm head. This
process, accompanied by an influx of sodium (Na+ ) and an efflux of hydrogen (H+ ), increases
the intracellular pH. Fusion of the outer acrosomal membrane with the overlying plasma
membrane soon follows. As the vesicles of the fused membranes are shed, the enzymatic
contents of the acrosome are freed and can assist the spermatozoa in making their way through
the zona pellucida. After the acrosomal reaction, the inner acrosomal membrane forms the outer
surface covering of most of the sperm head. Toward the base of the sperm head (in the
equatorial region), the inner acrosomal membrane fuses with the remaining postacrosomal
plasma membrane to maintain membrane continuity around the sperm head. Only after
completing the acrosomal reaction can the spermatozoon successfully begin to penetrate the
zona pellucida. The most important enzyme in penetration is acrosin, a serine proteinase that
is bound to the inner acrosomal membrane. When the sperm has made its way through the zona
and into the perivitelline space (the space between the egg’s plasma membrane and the zona
pellucida), it can make direct contact with the plasma membrane of the egg.

Figure 1: Sequence of events taking place during fertilization

STRUCTURAL ADAPTATIONS

Eggs are haploid cells and have one full set of chromosomes. This means that when a sperm
fertilizes an egg, the resulting offspring has a set of chromosomes from each parent. Every sex
cell, egg or sperm, comes from a parent cell with two full sets of chromosomes. The
chromosome number halves during meiosis. This adaptation ensures that the chromosome
number does not perpetually double with each generation of offspring.

Egg cells differ greatly from sperm in their structure. Sperm are adapted for mobility, while
eggs are adapted for fertilization and the development of a new organism. Egg cells are much
larger than sperm and contain a greater volume of cytoplasm. The cytoplasm of an egg cell
contains ribosomes, transfer RNA and messenger RNA. Messenger RNA provides the
instructions for protein assembly while transfer RNA delivers protein components to ribosomes
to be built. The cytoplasm also provides the nutrients for the developing organism.

A single parent cell results in the formation of four sperm cells. Egg cells, however, must have
more cytoplasm to function. Rather than dividing cytoplasm between four egg cells, the parent
cell divides into a single egg and three structures called polar bodies. The polar bodies,
produced so that appropriate chromosome numbers are maintained, soon degrade and are
reabsorbed by the body. The egg cell now has the requisite number of chromosomes as well as
all the cytoplasm it will need if fertilized. The ova provide the nutrients for the growing embryo
until it sinks into the uterus and the placenta takes over due to its large size.

As the sperm approach the egg, they bind to the zona pellucida in a process known as sperm
binding. This triggers the acrosome reaction, in which the enzymes of the acrosome are freed.
These enzymes then begin to digest the zona pellucida and allow the sperm to tunnel toward
the egg’s plasma membrane. When the sperm cell finally reaches the egg cell, the plasma
membranes of the two cells fuse together and the sperm releases its genetic material into the
egg.

Fusion also triggers the cortical reaction. When the sperm and egg fuse it triggers a release of
calcium ions, which cause the cortical granules inside the egg to fuse with the plasma
membrane. As they fuse, these granules release their contents outside of the cell, toward the
remains of the zona pellucida. The enzymes of the cortical granules further digest the zona
pellucida, making it unable to bind more sperm, while other molecules found in the granules
create a new protective layer around the fertilized egg. By creating a new barrier and destroying
the initial interface between sperm and egg, the cortical reaction prevents polyspermy, or the
fertilization of a single egg by multiple sperm.