The difference between male and female meiosis

There are mainly three differences between male and female meiosis

1. Male meiosis creates sperm, while female meiosis creates eggs.

2. Male meiosis takes place in the testicles, while female meiosis takes place in the ovaries.

3. A male will generally have one X and one Y sex chromosome, while a female have two X chromosomes, however only one of the two is active and the other is known as a barr body. During meiosis I, the sex chromosomes separate and enter different sperm or egg cells (gametes). Males will end up with one half X sperm and the other half Y sperm, while females will all have X eggs because they had no Y chromosome in the first place. There are more subtle differences though. At the end of meiosis I females have two daughter cells and meiosis II only occurs if and when fertilization occurs by a sperm cell. At that time both daughter cells divide to form 4 cells and of the 4 cells formed, 3 are discarded as polar bodies and the 4th cell having an enhanced cytoplasmic component combines its nuclear component with the sperm cell's nuclear component and crossing over occurs to form the embryo which then begins to divide via mitosis to become two cells, then four and so on.

 

Interesting Facts:

• Meiosis was discovered and described for the first time in sea urchin eggs in 1876 by the German biologist Oscar Hertwig.
  
  
• Saccharomyces cerevisiae reproduces mitotically (asexually) as diploid cells when nutrients are abundant, but switches to meiosis (sexual reproduction) under starvation condition.
  
  
• Abnormalities in meiosis in human causes the following diseases.
  
  

  •  Down Syndrome - trisomy of chromosome 21. •  Patau Syndrome - trisomy of chromosome 13. •  Edward Syndrome - trisomy of chromosome 18. •  Klinefelter Syndrome - extra X chromosomes in males - i.e. XXY, XXXY, XXXXY, etc. •  Turner Syndrome - lacking of one X chromosome in females - i.e. X0. •  Triple X syndrome - an extra X chromosome in females.