When a sperm fertilizes an egg, each contributes a set of chromosomes to the resulting embryo, which at these very early stages is called a zygote. Early on, zygotic genes are inert, so embryonic ...

Reviewed by Michael Greenwood, M.Sc. Fertilization is defined as a process where gametes (an egg and sperm) join together to form a full zygote. Both the sperm and egg contain a single set of 23 ...

Smoking by mothers during the period immediately before and after conception is linked to a delay in embryonic development, smaller fetuses at the time of the 20-week ultrasound scan, and lower birth ...

The oviduct plays an indispensable role in mammalian reproduction by not only transporting gametes and embryos but also by providing a finely tuned microenvironment that supports fertilisation and ...