Module 3

Module 3—The Male and Female Reproductive Systems

Lesson Summary

 

You have considered the following focusing questions:

• What are the physiological events of menstruation?

• What hormone(s) control the specific events of menstruation?

• When does menstruation naturally begin and end?

Sexual maturation in females occurs with the onset of puberty. Puberty begins when GnRH is released from the hypothalamus and acts on the anterior pituitary to produce the reproductive pituitary hormones of FSH and LH. FSH and LH then activate the female gonads, the ovaries, to produce the ovarian hormones, progesterone and estrogen, throughout the course of the ovarian and uterine events of the menstrual cycle.

 

The maturation of the ovum, or egg, and the preparation of the uterine lining for implantation of the zygote are regulated and achieved by the events of the menstrual cycle. The production levels of reproductive hormones drops as women age, resulting in the onset of menopause.

 

Lesson Glossary

 

Consult the glossary in the textbook for other definitions that you may need to complete your work.

 

endometrium: the lining of the uterus that is developed under the influence of estrogen from days 1 to 14, becoming thick and engorged with blood to accept an implanting embryo should fertilization take place

 

follicular stage: the first 14 days of the menstrual cycle in which the follicle is developing a mature ovum for ovulation and the endometrium is building in preparation for implantation of a possible embryo

 

hormone replacement therapy: combinations of estrogen and progesterone prescribed to decrease hot flashes and other discomforts that may come with menopause

 

hot flashes: periods of intense heat and sweating that occur as estrogen and progesterone hormone levels fluctuate during the years of menopause

 

luteal stage: the period of the menstrual cycle after ovulation (days 15 to 28), when the old follicle forms a corpus luteum that secretes progesterone and estrogen to maintain the endometrium

 

menopause: the end of ovulation and menstruation and the fading of secondary sex characteristics as estrogen and progesterone are no longer produced

 

ovarian cycle: the 28-day cycle of ovum development, in the following order: primary follicle, developing and mature follicle, ovulation of the egg, formation of the corpus luteum, and disintegration of the corpus luteum

 

ovarian hormones: estrogen secreted from the pre-ovulatory follicle and estrogen/progesterone secreted from the corpus luteum

 

pituitary hormones: FSH and LH secreted from the anterior pituitary

 

primary oocyte: the egg that the follicle is developing in the follicular phase, which has not completed the first meiotic division

 

uterine cycle: the 28-day cycle of shedding of the old endometrium (menstruation) and development of a new one

Biology 30 Learn EveryWare © 2009 Alberta Education