What is the difference between ovum and zygote

Talking about the anatomy of a sperm cell, it can be divided into head and tail. The head contains nucleus with densely coiled chromatin fibers and is anteriorly surrounded by a thin and flattened sac known as acrosome. Acrosome contains enzymes that help in the penetration into the female egg or ovum. The head portion of a sperm also contains vacuoles.

On the other hand, the tail which is also known as flagellum is the longest part of a sperm and goes into a wave-like motion that helps the sperm to swim and penetrate the egg. The four parts of the tail include the connecting piece, principal piece, midpiece and the end piece. Image to be added soon. Also called the egg cell or ova in plural, it is the female gamete or reproductive cell present in humans and most of the animals.

Ovum is non-motile and when the egg or ovum fuse with sperm during fertilization, a zygote or a diploid cell is formed that can grow further into a new organism. Sometimes, the young ovum of an animal is termed as ovule. Mammals have numerous ova at birth and these mature through oogenesis. In all the mammals including humans, the ovum is fertilized inside the female body. It is one of the largest cells in the human body and is visible even to the naked eye without the help of a microscope.

It measures approximately 0. Ovum is called oosphere in algae. Ovum has a cell substance at its center called the yolk or ooplasm. Ooplasm contains a nucleus named the germinal vesicle and also nucleolus called the germinal spot.

Ooplasm has formative yolk and nutritive yolk, the formative yolk is the cytoplasm of an ordinary animal cell and the nutritive yolk deutoplasm is made of rounded granules composed of fatty and albuminoidal substances in the cytoplasm.

The latter helps in nourishing the embryo in the early stages of developmental phase in mammals. On the other hand, birds contain egg nutritive yolk which is enough to supply its chick enough nutrients throughout the period of incubation. We will highlight the differences between sperm and ovum in a tabular chart as follows.

It is the male gamete or male reproductive cell. It is a female gamete or female reproductive cell. It is a motile cell having flagella that helps in its movement and penetration into ovum. Size of cell. It is the smallest cell in the human body. It is one of the largest cells in the human body.

Location of mitochondria. Mitochondria is centrally located in this cell. Mitochondria is scattered in the cytoplasm of the cell. Amount of Cytoplasm. Cytoplasm is present in very small amounts in sperm cells. Cytoplasm is present in large amounts in the egg cell or the ovum. Because the cells divide fast, with no time to grow, the morula tends to have the same size as the zygote. See the diagram below. From one-celled, it will soon become multicellular, as each cell will undergo mitosis.

This stage is crucial because the dividing cells are more sensitive to the effects of mutagens. Thus, there is a higher risk of genetic errors mutation during this stage. As a result, women are advised not to take any unprescribed medicine during pregnancy. The cells have innate mechanisms to repair DNA errors, however, they may not be enough when the extent of the damage becomes overwhelming.

The fetus is in the final development stage. In humans, the fetal stage begins in the 9th week post-fertilization up to the last week prior to the birth of the baby.

This is the period of growth and organ development. In humans, the zygote is the first cell stage of pregnancy. It is located first in the fallopian tube and moves towards the uterus. As the zygote travels, it divides to give rise to cells that will also undergo mitosis. Soon, the zygote will transition into an embryo that will be implanted in the uterus. There, the embryo will develop further into a fetus. For more info and facts on human development, read the Developmental Biology Tutorials.

These tutorials describe how a living thing grows and attains maturity. In many fungi and protists, the fusion of the nuclei of haploid cells produces a diploid zygote, called zygospore. In fungi, the zygospores are found in the zygosporangia. In algae, the zygospores occur as a cell following the fusion of unicellular gametes.

Watch this video below to know the different stages that a human zygote goes through to becoming an embryo. For human species to obviate extinction, reproductive mature adults should be producing viable offspring in order to continue the existence of the species and pass on genetic information from generation to generation. Read this tutorial to learn more about human reproduction and fertilization Read More. Plants are characterized by having alternation of generations in their life cycles.

This tutorial is a review of plant mitosis, meiosis, and alternation of generations. Developmental biology is a biological science that is primarily concerned with how a living thing grows and attains maturity. The tutorials included here focuses on human growth and development. Thus, one can expect to learn about human zygote developing and maturing into adulthood after these tutorials.

Also included here are informative guides on dietary sources.. Seed plants are vascular plants. They differ from the other vascular plants in producing seeds that germinate into a new plant.

Two major plant divisions are covered: the angiosperms and the gymnosperms. Humans are capable of only one mode of reproduction, i. Haploid sex cells gametes are produced so that at fertilization a diploid zygote forms. This tutorial is an in-depth study guide regarding male and female reproductive physiology Upon fertilization, a zygote forms and develops into an embryo.

This tutorial elaborates on the growth and development from zygote to embryo and ultimately to a human baby. Developmental Biology. Parental chromosomes are together but still apart at first mitosis. Malaria : Plasmodium togetherness a strategy for breeding success. First time! Human blood cell turned into a young sex cell. Mitochondrial DNA not just from moms but also from dads?

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A gamete. A fertilized prokaryote. A fertilized eukaryotic cell. In humans, a zygote forms from In humans, this cell is diploid egg cell. The union of the gametes' cytoplasms during fertilization Plasmogamy. The union of the gametes' nuclei during fertilization Plasmogamy. Your Name. To Email. Time is Up!