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20: Development and Inheritance

  • Page ID
    57599
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    Chapter Overview

    In this chapter, we will learn about the inheritance of various human traits and what makes each newborn unique.

    • 20.1: Fertilization
      Fertilization occurs when a sperm and an oocyte (egg) combine and their nuclei fuse. Because each of these reproductive cells is a haploid cell containing half of the genetic material needed to form a human being, their combination forms a diploid cell. This new single cell, called a zygote, contains all of the genetic material needed to form a human—half from the mother and half from the father.
    • 20.2: Patterns of Inheritance
      We have discussed the events that lead to the development of a newborn. But what makes each newborn unique? The answer lies, of course, in the DNA in the sperm and oocyte that combined to produce that first diploid cell, the human zygote.


    This page titled 20: Development and Inheritance is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Simantini Karve.

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