- published: 04 Feb 2015
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An ovum (plural ova, from the Latin word ovum meaning egg or egg cell) is a haploid female reproductive cell or gamete. Both animals and embryophytes have ova. The term ovule is used for the young ovum of an animal, as well as the plant structure that carries the female gametophyte and egg cell and develops into a seed after fertilization. In lower plants and algae, the ovum is also often called oosphere.
In higher animals, ova are produced by female gonads (sexual glands) called ovaries and all of them are present at birth in mammals and mature via oogenesis.
In the viviparous animals (which include humans and all other placental mammals), the ovum is fertilized inside the female body and the embryo then develops inside the uterus, receiving nutrition directly from the mother.
The human ova grow from primitive germ cells that are embedded in the substance of the ovaries. Each of them divides repeatedly to give rise to several smaller cells, the oogonia. The oogonia then develop via meiosis into the ova, the primary oocytes, and the polar bodies.
Actors: Doug Kolbicz (producer), Doug Kolbicz (director), Doug Kolbicz (editor), Doug Kolbicz (actor), Doug Kolbicz (writer), Mike Mullins (actor), Jamie Weeder (actor),
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Romance, Short,