Vocabulary
Pregnancy vocabulary, here you can find all the scientific words that scientists and medical professionals toss around without the care to explain them:
- Cell: in biology, the smallest unit that can live on its own and that makes up all living organisms and the tissues of the body. A cell has four main parts: the cell membrane, the nucleus, the organelles and the cytoplasm.
- Stem cell: Stem cells are the body’s raw materials, they are the cells from which all other cells with specialized functions are generated. Under the right conditions in the body or in a laboratory, stem cells divide to form more cells called daughter cells which after some divisions will become specialized cells such as ovules, myocytes (muscle cells), neurons, between others.
- Germ cell: A reproductive cell of the body. Germ cells are egg cells in females and sperm cells in males.
- Sperm: The male reproductive cell, formed in the testicle. A sperm unites with an egg to form an embryo.
- Ovule/egg: egg cells are the female sex cells – also known as gametes.
- Meiosis: a type of cell division that results in four daughter cells each with half the number of chromosomes of the parent cell, as in the production of gametes.
- Mitosis: a type of cell division that results in two daughter cells each having the same number and kind of chromosomes as the parent nucleus, typical of ordinary tissue growth.
- Chromosome: a threadlike structure of nucleic acids and protein found in the nucleus of most living cells, carrying genetic information in the form of genes.
- Haploid: (of a cell or nucleus) having a single set of unpaired chromosomes.
- Diploid: (of a cell or nucleus) containing two complete sets of chromosomes, one from each parent.
- Genetic material: The part of the cell which carries the genetic information that can be inherited is called genetic material. Example: DNA and RNA. The important function of the genetic material is to store information needed by the cell to make proteins.
- DNA: a self-replicating material that is present in nearly all living organisms as the main constituent of chromosomes. It is the carrier of genetic information.
- DNA replication: DNA replication is the process by which a double-stranded DNA molecule is copied to produce two identical DNA molecules. Replication is an essential process because, whenever a cell divides, the two new daughter cells must contain the same genetic information, or DNA, as the parent cell.
Organelles: a small structure in a cell that is surrounded by a membrane and has a specific function. - Cytosol: the aqueous component of the cytoplasm of a cell, within which various organelles and particles are suspended.
- Mitochondria: Small structures in a cell that are found in the cytoplasm. Mitochondria make most of the energy for the cell and have their own genetic material that is different from the genetic material found in the nucleus.
Golgi apparatus: a complex of vesicles and folded membranes within the cytoplasm of most eukaryotic cells, involved in secretion and intracellular transport. - Acrosomal vesicle: A structure in the head of a spermatozoon that contains acid hydrolases, and is concerned with the breakdown of the outer membrane of the ovum during fertilization.
- Protein: molecule made up of amino acids. Proteins are needed for the body to function properly. They are the basis of body structures, such as skin and hair, and of other substances such as enzymes, cytokines, and antibodies.
- Ejaculation: the action of ejecting semen from the body.
- Prostate: a gland surrounding the neck of the bladder in male mammals and releasing a fluid component of semen.
- Seminal vesicles: each of a pair of glands which open into the vas deferens near to its junction with the urethra and secrete many of the components of semen.
- Embryonic development: human embryonic development, or human embryogenesis, is the development and formation of the human embryo. It is characterized by the processes of cell division and cellular differentiation of the embryo that occurs during the early stages of development.
- Puberty: the period during which adolescents reach sexual maturity and become capable of reproduction. Most females will start puberty when they’re 8 to 13 years old, and most males will start between 9 and 14. But it can also be normal to start earlier or later.Mommy Major is the place for all you mothers that want to learn what is going on inside your body. Unfortunately, pregnancy is not taught is schools, nor in hospitals. Get your major on pregnancy studies with Mommy Major.
