The process of formation of a mature haploid female gamete from diploid oogonium...
Oogenesis
The process of formation of a mature haploid female gamete from diploid oogonium is called oogenesis. It occurs in the ovaries.
It consists of the following three phases:
Multiplication phase: Oogenesis is initiated during the embryonic development stage when a couple of million gamete mother cells (oogonia) are formed within each foetal ovary. No more oogonia are formed and added after birth. These cells start division and enter into prophase-I of the meiotic division. They get temporarily arrested at this stage and are called primary oocytes.
Growth phase: Each primary oocyte then gets surrounded by a layer of granulosa cells. This structure is called the primary follicle. A large number of these follicles degenerate during the phase from birth to puberty. At puberty, only 60,000 to 80,000 primary follicles are left in each ovary. The primary follicles get surrounded by more layers of granulosa cells and a new theca to form secondary follicles.
Maturation phase: In the first maturation phase, the secondary follicle soon transforms into a tertiary follicle. The primary oocyte within the tertiary follicle grows in size and completes its first meiotic division to form a large, haploid, secondary oocyte and a tiny first polar body. The tertiary follicle changes into a mature follicle - the Graafian follicle - which ruptures to release the secondary oocyte (ovum) from the ovary by a process called ovulation. The second maturation phase occurs after fertilisation when the meiotic division of the secondary oocyte is complete. This second meiotic division results in the formation of a second polar body and a haploid ovum (ootid).
