How is the Gender of a Baby Determined?
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- Category: Sex Selection
- Published on Friday, 09 December 2011 01:49
- Written by Administrator
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How is the Gender of a Baby Determined?
Gender selection is possible because of how sex is determined by our chromosomes. Our bodies are made up of billions of cells. All cells contain 46 rod-like forms arranged in pairs called chromosomes, except for the special reproductive cells, the sperm and egg cells, called gametes, each of which only possess 23 chromosomes.
During fertilization, the gametes combine and restore the normal chromosome number (46) in the embryo. One of these pairs of chromosomes defines the sex of the developing baby. This pair is called the sex chromosome. Each sex chromosome is made up of an "X and Y" chromosome, which define a male, or an "X and X" chromosome, which define a female. Eggs can only contain X chromosomes, but sperm contain either an X or a Y chromosome.
