The Human Reproductive System: Males

The Human Reproductive Systems

Integrated Science

Objectives

At the end of this lesson, students should be able to:

*relate the structures of the main parts of the male system to their functions

*relate the structures of the male gamete to its function

Poll

How do humans reproduce?

• sexually

• asexually

Multiple Choice

A gamete is ...

• a gamete that people play.

• a part of a flower.

• a cell that is used during reproduction.

• what you call the offspring at the start of reproduction.

Multiple Choice

The name of the male gamete is sperm.

• true

• false

Multiple Choice

The name of the female gamete is also sperm.

• True: both males and females have similar gametes.

• False: it is called ovum.

Humans Reproduce Sexually

Humans reproduce sexually through the fusing of the male and female gametes. The male gamete is the sperm and the female gamete is the ovum. The fusion of the gametes is called fertilisation. Fertilisation is possible because of structures in the male and female reproductive systems.

The Male Reproductive System

The mains structures are the penis, testes (testicles), urethra and sperm duct. The penis and testes are visible outside of the body. The two (pair) testes are protected inside a sac called the scrotum. The testes hang outside of the body below the abdomen.

The Male Reproductive System

The testes are located outside of the body because they are the parts of the males' systems that produce sperm. The process of producing sperm works best at a temperature that is about 2 degrees below body temperature.

The Male Reproductive System

If the temperature outside the body gets too cold, the scrotum will pull up towards the body to warm up the testes.

The Male Reproductive System

A healthy male produces more than 100 million sperm cells daily from the onset of puberty until death.

Multiple Choice

Which of the following numbers is 100 million?

• 100, 000

• 100, 000, 000

• 100, 000, 000, 000,

• 100, 000, 000, 000, 000

Multiple Select

Which of the following are the four main parts of the male reproductive system?

• penis

• testes

• scrotum

• urethra

• sperm duct

Multiple Choice

The part of the male reproductive system that produces sperm is the ...

• seminal vesicles

• the penis

• the testes

• the epididymis

Multiple Choice

The part of the male reproductive system that transfers sperm to the female reproductive system during sexual intercourse is ...

• seminal vesicles

• the penis

• the testes

• the epididymis

The Human Sperm

*male sex cell

*microscopic

*three main parts-head, middle piece and tail

Up close, the sperm cell resembles a tadpole.

Human sperm cells look like tadpoles up close.

The Human Sperm: The Head

*the head contains a nucleus with the DNA to be passed on to the offspring

*the nucleus is protected by a structure called an acrosome

*the acrosome contains enzymes that will breakdown the outer walls of the ovum during fertilisation

The Human Sperm: The Middle Piece

*the middle piece contains many mitochondria that produce and release the energy needed by the sperm to move to the ovum.

The Human Sperm: The Tail

*the tail of the sperm moves in a whip-like manner to propel it towards the ovum

*the tail of the sperm gets the energy to move from the many mitochondria in the middle piece

Multiple Select

What are the three parts of the sperm cell?

• the head

• the neck

• the middle

• the tail

• the acrosome

Multiple Choice

What is the name of the structure in the sperm cell that contains enzymes?

• the head

• the mitochondria

• the middle

• the tail

• the acrosome

Multiple Choice

Which baby animals do human sperm cells look like?