The more scientists learn about mammalian reproduction the more
amazing the process appears to be. In our
January/February 2009 issue we discussed the fact that the
immunological system of the mother tends to reject the fetus and
that an elaborate system is designed to allow the baby to develop
within the mother’s womb. New data has now come to show that the
mechanism that allows the sperm to find the egg is far more complex
than anyone dreamed.
Dr. Michael Eisenbach of the Weizmann Institute of Science has
released a study showing that the sperm is directed to the egg by
temperature variations in the fallopian tubes — a process called
thermotaxis. The egg rests at a spot that has a higher temperature
than where the sperm begin their journey. There has previously been
data to show that the unfertilized egg releases attractants to get
the sperm to head in the direction of the egg — a process called
chemotaxis.
It has always been a mystery to researchers as to why the sperm seem
to head straight for the egg. They are simply cells, not organisms
with a brain. It now appears that the reproductive system is
designed in such a way that several things motivate these cells to
move toward union with the egg. It seems that conception is a
miracle of design, and obviously one that has been incredibly
successful. Source: Science News,
February 1, 2003, page 69.
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