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Gonad

 

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Gonad



 
 
The gonad is the organ that makes gamete
Gamete

A gamete is a Cell that fuses with another gamete during fertilization in organisms that sexual reproduction. In species which produce two morphologically distinct types of gametes, and in which each individual produces only one type, a female is any individual which produces the larger type of gamete?called an ovum ?and a male produces th...
s. The gonads in males are the testes and the gonads in females are the ovaries. The product, gametes, are haploid germ cells. For example, spermatozoon
Spermatozoon

A sperm, from the ancient Greek word sp???a and and more commonly known as a sperm cell, is the ploidy cell that is the male gamete. It Fertilization an ovum to form a zygote....
 and egg
Ovum

An ovum 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....
 cells are gametes. Although medically the gonad term can refer to either male gonads (testicle
Testicle

The testicle is the male gonad in animals. This article will concentrate on mammalian testicles unless otherwise noted.The etymology of the word is somewhat colorfully based on Roman law....
s) or female gonads (ovaries
Ovary

The ovary is an ovum-producing reproductive organ, often found in pairs as part of the vertebrate female reproductive system. Ovaries in females are homology to testicle in males, in that they are both gonads and endocrine glands....
), the vernacular
Vernacular

Vernacular refers to the native language of a country or a locality. In general linguistics, it is used to describe local languages as opposed to Lingua franca, official standards or global languages....
, or slang
Slang

Slang is the use of highly informal words and expressions that are not considered standard in the speaker's dialect or language....
, use of "gonads" (or "nads") usually only refers to the testicles.

male gonads, known as the testes or testicles, secrete a class of hormones called androgens, and produce spermatozoa
Spermatozoon

A sperm, from the ancient Greek word sp???a and and more commonly known as a sperm cell, is the ploidy cell that is the male gamete. It Fertilization an ovum to form a zygote....
.






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The gonad is the organ that makes gamete
Gamete

A gamete is a Cell that fuses with another gamete during fertilization in organisms that sexual reproduction. In species which produce two morphologically distinct types of gametes, and in which each individual produces only one type, a female is any individual which produces the larger type of gamete?called an ovum ?and a male produces th...
s. The gonads in males are the testes and the gonads in females are the ovaries. The product, gametes, are haploid germ cells. For example, spermatozoon
Spermatozoon

A sperm, from the ancient Greek word sp???a and and more commonly known as a sperm cell, is the ploidy cell that is the male gamete. It Fertilization an ovum to form a zygote....
 and egg
Ovum

An ovum 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....
 cells are gametes. Although medically the gonad term can refer to either male gonads (testicle
Testicle

The testicle is the male gonad in animals. This article will concentrate on mammalian testicles unless otherwise noted.The etymology of the word is somewhat colorfully based on Roman law....
s) or female gonads (ovaries
Ovary

The ovary is an ovum-producing reproductive organ, often found in pairs as part of the vertebrate female reproductive system. Ovaries in females are homology to testicle in males, in that they are both gonads and endocrine glands....
), the vernacular
Vernacular

Vernacular refers to the native language of a country or a locality. In general linguistics, it is used to describe local languages as opposed to Lingua franca, official standards or global languages....
, or slang
Slang

Slang is the use of highly informal words and expressions that are not considered standard in the speaker's dialect or language....
, use of "gonads" (or "nads") usually only refers to the testicles.

Testes

The male gonads, known as the testes or testicles, secrete a class of hormones called androgens, and produce spermatozoa
Spermatozoon

A sperm, from the ancient Greek word sp???a and and more commonly known as a sperm cell, is the ploidy cell that is the male gamete. It Fertilization an ovum to form a zygote....
. The predominant androgen in males is testosterone
Testosterone

Testosterone is a steroid hormone from the androgen group. In mammals, testosterone is primarily secreted in the testis of males and the ovaries of females, although small amounts are also secreted by the adrenal glands....
.

Regulation

The gonads are controlled hormonally by luteinizing hormone
Luteinizing hormone

Luteinizing hormone is a hormone produced by the anterior pituitary gland.* In the female, an acute rise of LH ? the LH surge ? triggers ovulation....
 (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone
Follicle-stimulating hormone

Follicle-stimulating hormone is a hormone synthesized and secreted by gonadotropes in the anterior pituitary gland. FSH regulates the development, growth, pubertal maturation, and reproductive processes of the human body....
 (FSH) secreted by the anterior pituitary gland. The anterior pituitary gland's excretion of LH and FSH are, in turn, controlled by the hypothalamus
Hypothalamus

The hypothalamus is a portion of the brain that contains a number of small nuclei with a variety of functions. One of the most important functions of the hypothalamus is to link the nervous system to the endocrine system via the pituitary gland ....
' gonadotropin-releasing hormone
Gonadotropin-releasing hormone

Gonadotropin-releasing hormone , also known as Luteinizing-hormone releasing hormone , is a tropic hormone peptide hormone responsible for the release of follicle-stimulating hormone and luteinizing hormone from the anterior pituitary....
.

Development

Gonads start developing as a common anlage, in the form of gonadal ridge
Gonadal ridge

In embryology, the gonadal ridge is the precursor to the gonads. The gonadal ridge initially consists mainly of mesenchyme and cells of underlying mesonephric origin....
s, and only later are differentiated to male or female sex organ
Sex organ

A sex organ, or primary sexual characteristic, as narrowly defined, is any of the anatomical parts of the body which are involved in sexual reproduction and constitute the reproductive system in a complex organism; in mammals, these include:...
s. The SRY
SRY

SRY is a sex-determining gene on the Y chromosome in the therians .This intronless gene encodes a transcription factor that is a member of the high mobility group -box family of DNA-binding proteins....
 gene
Gene

A gene is the basic unit of heredity in a living organism. All living things depend on genes. Genes hold the information to build and maintain their cell and pass genetic trait to offspring....
, located on the Y chromosome
Y chromosome

The Y chromosome is the Sex-determination system chromosome in most mammals, including humans. In mammals, it contains the gene SRY, which triggers testicle development, thus determining sex....
 and encoding the testis determining factor
Testis determining factor

Testis-determining factor is a general term for the gene that results in maleness in humans and some other species.Certain genes cause chemical reactions that result in the development of testes....
, decides the direction of this differentiation.

The development of gonads is a part of the development of the urinary and reproductive organs
Development of the urinary and reproductive organs

The development of the urinary and reproductive organs as a part of the prenatal development, concerns the urinary system and sex organs. The latter is a part of the stages of sexual differentiation....
.