REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM

❑ DUCT SYSTEM
❖ Gonads • Accessory organs of the male reproductive
system.
❑ Gonads produce sex cells/gametes and secrete
sex hormones. • Epididymis– highly convoluted tube that hugs
the posterior side of the testis, temporary storage
• Female Gonads (ovaries) –produce egg cells. site for the immature sperm.
• Male Gonads (testes) – produce sperm cells. • Ductus Deferens / vas deferens - runs upward
from the epididymis via the spermatic cord;
propel live sperm from their storage sites
ANATOMY OF MALE
• Urethra – terminal part of the male duct
REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM system; extends from the base of the urinary
bladder to the tip of the penis; carries both urine
and sperm to the body exterior.

❑ TESTES
• Primary reproductive organ of male
• Has exocrine and endocrine function
• Golf ball-sized male gonad approx. 4 cm long
and 2.5 cm wide and is connected to the trunk via
spermatic cord.
• Spermatic Cord - connective tissue sheath that ❑ THREE REGIONS OF URETHRA
encloses blood vessels, nerves, and the ductus
deferens. • Prostatic Urethra surrounded by the prostate
gland.
• Tunica Albuginea- a fibrous connective tissue
capsule, “white coat surrounds each testis. • Membranous Urethra - spanning the distance
from prostatic urethra to the penis.
• Seminiferous Tubules – “sperm-forming
factories”. • Spongy (Penile) Urethra- running within the
length of the penis and opening to the body
exterior via the external urethral orifice.
❑ ACCESSORY GLANDS AND SEMEN
• Seminal Vesicles – located at the base of the
bladder. Produce about 60% of seminal fluid, the
fluid portion of semen.
• Prostate - a single doughnut-shaped gland
about the size of a peach pit. It encircles the upper
(prostatic) part of the urethra just inferior to the
urinary bladder.
• Prostate Fluid – milky and plays a role in
activating sperm.
• Bulbourethral Glands – are tiny, pea-sized
glands inferior to the prostate gland. They
produce a thick, clear mucus that drains into the
penile urethra. It cleanses the urethra of trace
acidic urine prior to ejaculation, and it serves as
a lubricant during sexual intercourse.
• Semen- a milky white, somewhat sticky
mixture of sperm and accessory gland secretions.

MALE REPRODUCTIVE FUNCTIONS

❑ EXTERNAL GENITALIA ➢ Spermatogenesis
• Scrotum– hang divided sac of skin with sparse • Commonly known as the sperm production.
hairs that hangs outside the abdominal cavity,
• Begins at puberty in seminiferous tubules in
between the legs at the root of the penis.
response to FSH. Spermatogenesis involves
• Penis– functions to deliver sperm into the meiosis, a special nuclear division that halves the
female reproductive tract. chromosomal number in resulting spermatids. An
additional process that strips excess cytoplasm
• Shaft – body of the penis
from the spermatid, called spermiogenesis, is
• Glans Penis– enlarged tip of the penis necessary for production of functional, motile
sperm.
• Prepuce/ Foreskin– loose skin around the
proximal end of the glans penis - this can be
surgically removed through circumcision.
 ❑ OVARIES
• Primary female reproductive organs.
• Has exocrine and endocrine functions.
➢ Mature Sperm • Ovarian Follicles– tiny saclike structures in the
ovaries.
• has 3 regions: head, midpiece, and tail.
• Oocyte–immature egg, surrounded by follicle
• sperm head is the nucleus and contains
cells.
compacted dna, the genetic material.
• Acrosome– helmetlike structure anterior to the
nucleus, which is produced by the golgi • As a developing egg within a follicle begins to
apparatus and is similar to a large lysosome. ripen or mature, the follicle enlarges and
develops a fluid-filled central region called an
antrum. At this stage, the follicle, called a
❑ TESTOSTERONE PRODUCTION Vesicular Follicle or Graafian Follicle, is
mature, and the developing egg is ready to be
• The most important hormonal product of the ejected from the ovary, an event called ovulation.
testes. After ovulation, the ruptured follicle is
• Testosterone production begins at puberty in transformed into a very different-looking
response to lh. It is produced by interstitial cells structure called a corpus luteum, which
of the testes. Testosterone causes the appearance eventually degenerates. Ovulation generally
of male secondary sex characteristics and is occurs every 28 days.
necessary for sperm maturation.

ANATOMY OF THE FEMALE

REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM
*More complex than that of the male. Not only
must she produce the female gametes (ova), but
her body must also nurture and protect a
developing fetus during 9 months of pregnancy.

❑ DUCT SYSTEM: UTERINE TUBES

• Uterine Tubes– aka fallopian tubes; approx.
10cm (4 inches) long and extends medially from
an ovary to empty into the superior region of the
uterus. These receive the ovulated oocyte and
provide a site where fertilization can occur.
• Infundibulum– funnel-shape located at the
distal end of each uterine tube.
• Fimbriae– fingerlike projections that partially
surround the ovary.
• Ends form fringed fimbriae that “wave” to
direct ovulated oocytes into uterine tubes. These
tubes then conduct the oocyte (or embryo) to the
uterus by peristalsis and ciliary action.
 • Also called as Vulva.
• Mons Pubis– “mountain of pubis” is a fatty,
rounded area overlying the pubic symphysis.
❑ DUCT SYSTEM: UTERUS
• Labia Majora– hair-covered skin folds;
• Also called as the Womb. encloses the vestibule.
• Located in the pelvis between the urinary • Labia Minora– hair-free skin folds.
bladder and rectum, is a hollow organ that
functions to receive, retain, and nourish a • Vestibule– contains the urethral orifice and
fertilized egg. vaginal orifice.

• In a woman who has never been pregnant, it is • Clitoris – is a small, protruding structure that
about the size and shape of a pear. During corresponds to the male penis.
pregnancy, the uterus increases tremendously in • Greater Vestibular Glands- a pair of mucus-
size and during the latter part of pregnancy can producing glands that lubricates the distal end of
be felt well above the umbilicus. the vagina during intercourse.
Walls Of Uterus:
• Endometrium– inner layer; sloughs off each FEMALE REPRODUCTIVE FUNCTIONS
month in menses unless an embryo has become AND CYCLES
embedded in it.
• Myometrium– bulky middle layer; plays an
active role during childbirth, when it contracts
rhythmically to force the baby out of the mother’s
body.
• Perimetrium– outermost serous layer

❑ DUCT SYSTEM: VAGINA

• It lies between the bladder and rectum and
extends from the cervix to the body exterior.
• Often called the birth canal
• Hymen– a thin fold of the mucosa which
partially closes the distal end of the vagina; very
vascular and tends to bleed when it is ruptured
during the first sexual intercourse.
❑ OOGENESIS
• Oogenesis (production of female sex cells)
❑ EXTERNAL GENITALIA AND FEMALE occurs in ovarian follicles, which are activated at
PERINEUM puberty by FSH and LH to mature and eject
oocytes (ovulation) on a cyclic basis. The egg
(ovum) is formed only if sperm penetrates the
secondary Oocyte. In females, meiosis produces
only one functional ovum (plus three non-
functional polar bodies), as compared with the
four functional sperm per meiosis event produced
by males.
❑ HORMONE PRODUCTION: • It takes 1 to 2 hours for sperm to complete the
journey up the female duct system into the
➢Estrogens are produced by ovarian follicles in uterine tubes.
response to FSH.
• Hundreds of sperm must release their acrosomal
➢ Progesterone, produced in response to lh, is enzymes to break down the oocyte’s plasma
the main hormonal product of the corpus luteum. membrane (corona radiata).

➢ Estrogens stimulate development of female • A single sperm makes contact with one of the
secondary sex characteristics. oocyte’s membrane receptors.
• Once the sperm has entered, the ovum sheds its
remaining membrane surface receptors for
❑ UTERINE MENSTRUAL CYCLE sperm, preventing other sperm from gaining
entry.
• The Menstrual Cycle involves changes in the
endometrium in response to fluctuating blood • The oocyte then undergoes its second meiotic
levels of ovarian hormones. There are three division.
phases:
• Fertilization occurs at the moment the genetic
• A. Days 1-5 Menstrual Phase. Endometrium material of a sperm combines with that of an
sloughs off and bleeding occurs. Ovarian ovum to form a fertilized egg, or zygote, with a
hormones are at their lowest levels. complete set of 46 chromosomes. The zygote
represents the first cell of the new individual.
• B. Days 6-14 Proliferative Phase.
Endometrium is repaired, thickens, and becomes
well vascularized in response to increasing levels
of estrogens. ❑ EMBRYONIC DEVELOPMENT

• C. Days 15-28 Secretory Phase. Endometrial

glands begin to secrete nutrients, and lining
becomes more vascular in response to increasing
level of progesterone.

❑ STAGES OF PREGNANCY AND

DEVELOPMENT
❖ Childbirth
•Fertilization
• also called parturition, is the culmination of
•Embryonic period pregnancy. it usually occurs within 15 days of the
calculated due date (which is 280 days from the
•Fetal period
last menstrual period). the series of events that
•Childbirth/Parturition Pregnancy and expel the infant from the uterus is referred to as
Embryonic Development labor.
• Pregnancy refers to events that occur from the
time of fertilization (conception) until birth.
PATHOPHYSIOLOGY
• Conceptus- woman’s developing offspring.
❖ Phimosis - narrowing of the foreskin of the
penis and misplaced urethral openings.
❑ FERTILIZATION ❖ Cryptorchidism - failure of the testes to make
• The Oocyte is viable for 12-24 hours after their normal descent.
ovulation. • Puberty - is the period of life, generally
• Within the female reproductive tract, sperms are between the ages of 10 and 15 years.
viable for 24-48 hrs. • Influence of rising levels of gonadal hormones.
• 13 years old: (male) - enlargement of the testes,
scrotum, appearance of the pubic, axillary and
facial hair.
• 11 years old: (female) - the first menstrual
period, usually occurs about 2 years later and the
hormonal maturity takes nearly 2 more years.
• Escherichia Coli - most common vaginal
infection.
• Sexually Transmitted Microorganism -
gonorrhea, syphilis, and genital warts and yeasts
a type of fungus.

THE MOST COMMON INFLAMMATORY

CONDITIONS: (MEN)
• Urethritis
• Prostatitis
• Epididiymitis
•Orchitis – inflammation of the testes. it can
cause sterility.

MOST COMMON REPRODUCTIVE

CANCERS IN ADULT: (WOMEN)
• Tumors of the breast
• Tumors of the cervix
• Menopause - ending childbearing ability.
• Andropause - aging men exhibit a steady
decline in testosterone secretion and a longer
latent period after orgasm.