Female+Reproductive+System

= Unlike the male, a female has their reproductive system located entirely in their pelvis. = = An outside look = = Vulva: The external covering of the female reproductive unit = __Mons pubis__: fleshy area located just above the vaginal opening (manz pyoo bis) __Labia major__: "large lips"relatively large and fleshy, and are comparable to the scrotum in males. The labia majora contain sweat and oil-secreting glands. After puberty, the labia majora are covered with hair. __Labia minor__: "small lips" the labia minora can be very small or up to 2 inches wide. They lie just inside the labia majora, and surround the openings to the vagina __Bartholin's glands__: These glands are located beside the vaginal opening and produce a fluid (mucus) secretion. __Clitoris__: A small sensory organ on located towards the front of the vulva where the labia joins = An inside look: = __Uretha__: A canal that carries urine from the bladder to the outside of the body __Vagina__: A hollow muscular tube that extends from the vaginal opening to the uterus (about 3-5 inches long) *The walls of the vagina are able to contract and expand which is why they can hold babies *The vaginal walls are lined in a mucus membrane for protection and to keep it moist __Hymen:__ a thin sheet of tissue with one or more holes partially covering the vaginal opening __Uterus__: (AKA Womb) is what the vagina connects to. Shaped like an upside down pear and is one of the strongest muscles in the female body. About three inches long and 2 inches wide (when not pregnant.) __Cervix:__ Made of strong thick walls with a small hole (the size of a straw)- cervix walls expand during childbirth Fallopian tubes: Set of tubes that connect uterus to ovaries. They are about the width of spaghetti and as long as an index finger __Ovaries__: oval shaped organs that produce and store eggs (1.5-2 in) *They are also part of the endocrine system because they produce estrogen & progesterone female sex hormones __Ovulation__: The release of the eggs held in the ovaries which travel down the fallopian tubes
 * FEMALE REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM**

= Whats the point? = = What is Menstruation? = Hormonal activity that repeats at one-month intervals. With every cycle, a woman's body prepares for a potential pregnancy -Follicular Phase- starts first day of period 1__.____The hormones, FSH and LH (follicle stimulating hormone and luteinizing hormone)__ are released from the brain and travel in the blood to the ovaries 2.The hormones stimulate the growth of about 15 to 20 eggs in the ovaries each in its own "shell," called a follicle. 3.These hormones (FSH and LH) also trigger an increase in the production of the female hormone estrogen. 4.As estrogen levels rise, like a switch, it turns off the production of follicle-stimulating hormone. This careful balance of hormones allows the body to limit the number of follicles that mature. 5.As the follicular phase progresses, one follicle in one ovary becomes dominant and continues to mature. This dominant follicle suppresses all of the other follicles in the group. As a result, they stop growing and die. The dominant follicle continues to produce estrogen. This is called __Oogenesis__.
 * 1) Produces eggs (which later can be fertilized by sperm to create a baby)
 * 2) Sexual intercourse
 * 3) Provide protection for fertilized egg
 * 4) Give birth

-Ovulatory Phase- 14 days after the follicular phase 1. rise in estrogen makes an increase in LH 2.egg is released from ovary due to the increase 3. fillopian tubes catch the egg *During this phase there is an increase in mucous production in the cervix

-Luteal Phase- 1. Empty follicle where egg once was develops into the corpus leteum 2. This corpus leteum produces a hormone called progesterone which prepares the uterus for a fertalized egg

3.If intercourse has taken place and a man's sperm has fertilized the egg (a process called conception), the fertilized egg (embryo) will travel through the fallopian tube to implant in the uterus. The woman is now considered pregnant. 4.If the egg is not fertilized, it passes through the uterus. the lining of the uterus breaks down and sheds, and the next menstrual period begins.

**What is Menopause?**
Menopause is the ending of menstration and ovulation. Menopause occurs after about 450 cycles or around 40-50-60 age range Ovaries loose responsiveness to FSH and LH, which reduces estrogen production in the ovary. It is and unusual phenomenon that is not present in most other species. ~a theory about the evolution of menopause is that it increases the chances of offspring to live longer and be better taken care of by mothers that can no longer have more children.

What happens during pregnancy?
__Pregnancy, or gestation__, is the condition of carrying one or more embryos in the uterus. Pregnancy in humans last about 266 days (38 weeks). The length of pregnancy between species depends on how big the fetus is. ex. elephants have long pregnancies. __Conception__- fertilization of the egg by a sperm. (or more, twins) We learned about cleavage to form the blastopore and gastrulation to formthe blastopore in the animal chapter. Humans are deuterostomes (blastopore becomes the anus) The embryo secretes hormones, one is __Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG)__, that signal its presence and control the mother's reproductive system. *(fetuses are parasites!)

*Pregnancy tests detect levels of HCG in urine.

-First Trimester- 1) Differentiation of cells begin. Humans are late decision. 2) The outer layer of the blastocyst, the __trophoblast__ mingles with the uterus lining, the __endometrium__, and forms the placenta. 3) __Organogenesis__, the development of the body organs, begins. *The heart starts beating by the fourth week.  *At 8 weeks the embryo is called a fetus. (it is only 5 cm long by the end of the first trimester)

-Second Trimester- 1) The fetus grows to about 30cm and is active. 2)Hormone levels stabilize, HCG declines. The placenta takes completely takes over the production of __progesterone__, a hormone that maintains pregnancy. *The mother's blood and the fetus's blood don't mix. Nutrients and waste are exchanged via diffusion, active transport, and selective absorption.

-Third Trimester- 1)the fetus grows about 3-4 kg and 50cm a week. 2) hormones-__Estrogen, oxytocin, and prostaglandins,__ regulate labor. *Positive feed back induces labor. Birth, or __parturition__, is brouth about by a serie of strong uterine contractions. +First Stage thinning of the cervix, leads to __dilation__ (opening of cervix) +Second Stage __expulsion__, or deliver of baby followed by the umbilical cord which is cut. +Third Stage expulsion of the __placenta__, the organ that attached the fetus to the uterine wall.