Sexual Reproduction (Cambridge O Level Biology)

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Gametes & Zygotes

Sexual Reproduction

  • Sexual reproduction is a process involving the fusion of the nuclei of two gametes (sex cells) to form a zygote (fertilised egg cell) and the production of offspring that are genetically different from each other
  • Fertilisation is defined as the fusion of gamete nuclei, and as each gamete comes from a different parent, there is variation in the offspring

Gametes

  • A gamete is a sex cell (in animals: sperm and ovum; in plants pollen nucleus and ovum)
  • The nuclei of gametes are haploid
    • They contain half the number of chromosomes of a normal body cell
    • In humans, this is 23 chromosomes

The zygote

  • When the male and female gametes fuse, they become a zygote (fertilised egg cell)
  • This contains the full 46 chromosomes, half of which came from the father and half from the mother
  • The nucleus of a zygote is diploid
    • It contains the same number of chromosomes as a normal body cell
    • In humans, this is 23 pairs of chromosomes
    • The zygote continues to stay diploid as it grows into a fetus and embryo during pregnancy

Haploid _ Diploid cells

Advantages and Disadvantages of Sexual Reproduction

Advantages Disadvantages
Increases genetic variation

It takes time and energy to find mates

The species can adapt to new environments due to variation giving them a survival advantage Difficult for isolated members of the species to reproduce
Disease is less likely to affect population (due to variation)  

  • Most crop plants reproduce sexually and this is an advantage as it means variation is increased and a genetic variant may be produced which is better able to cope with weather changes, or produces significantly higher yield
  • The disadvantage is that the variation may lead to offspring that are less successful than the parent plant at growing well or producing a good harvest

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Ruth

Author: Ruth

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Ruth graduated from Sheffield University with a degree in Biology and went on to teach Science in London whilst also completing an MA in innovation in Education. She gained 10 years of teaching experience across the 3 key science disciplines and physical education. Ruth decided to set up a tutoring business to support students in her local area. Ruth has worked with several exam boards and loves to use her experience to produce educational materials which make the mark schemes accessible to all students.