Browse A-Z

Bookmarks Save as Bookmark
bookmarks-menu
Save as BookmarkBookmark
 
E-mail Form
Email Results

 
 

Conception - general

In this cut -away view you can see both the woman’s and the man’s reproductive organs during intercourse. Here are the penis, vagina, uterus, testicle and prostate gland.

During intercourse, sperm are released into the vagina near the cervix, which is the entrance to the uterus. Here you can see the sperm swimming through the uterus and up the fallopian tubes. From their profiles, you can see the sperm actually have 3 parts, a head, a middle section, and a tail. The tail propels the sperm, which is powered by energy cells stored in the middle section. The head of the sperm contains the man’s genetic material and an enzyme-filled acrosomal cap needed to help the sperm penetrate through the outer membrane of the egg.

Here’s the egg, moving through the fallopian tube. Within the fallopian tube, the egg is met by hundreds of sperm. Finally, one of the sperm succeeds in breaking through the egg’s outer membrane.

After penetrating the egg’s outer membrane, the sperm released its nucleus, which unites with the nucleus from the egg. Fertilization or conception occurs when the sperm fuses with the egg to form a fertilized egg. The fertilized egg is called a zygote.

Conception - general

Review Date: 11/12/2021

Reviewed By: John D. Jacobson, MD, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Loma Linda University School of Medicine, Loma Linda, CA. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.

Videos

Browse All

##RemoveMe## ##RemoveMe##

Animations

Browse All

##RemoveMe## ##RemoveMe##

The information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed medical professional should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. Links to other sites are provided for information only -- they do not constitute endorsements of those other sites. No warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, is made as to the accuracy, reliability, timeliness, or correctness of any translations made by a third-party service of the information provided herein into any other language. © 1997- A.D.A.M., a business unit of Ebix, Inc. Any duplication or distribution of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited.

BACK
TO
TOP
A.D.A.M. content is best viewed in IE9 or above, Firefox and Google Chrome browser.
Content is best viewed in IE9 or above, Firefox and Google Chrome browser.