Video Transcript
If a female does not want to become
pregnant, she can have her Fallopian tubes surgically tied. What impact will this have? (A) The ovum, egg cell, will not be
able to travel through the fallopian tubes to be fertilized. (B) The ovum, egg cell, will not
develop to full maturity and will not be released from the ovary. (C) The sperm will be blocked from
entering the vagina during sexual intercourse. (D) Sex hormones that control the
body’s fertility will not be made.
This question is asking about the
fallopian tubes, which are a part of the female reproductive system. In order to answer this question,
let’s review the female reproductive system which we can see here. The genitals are the outside part
of the reproductive system. In females, the genitals are called
the vulva. The vagina is the muscular tube
that extends from the genitals. This is where semen can be
ejaculated during sexual intercourse. The semen contains sperm cells,
which can combine with an egg cell.
Egg cells, or ova, are released by
the ovaries during a process called ovulation. The ovum is released to a tube
called the fallopian tube. Inside the fallopian tube, an egg
cell can combine with a sperm cell to make a fertilized egg. The fertilized egg can then make
its way toward the uterus. Once inside the uterus, the
fertilized egg can implant in the uterine lining to start a pregnancy.
So, in this question, we’re being
asked what would happen if the fallopian tubes were surgically tied. We can see what surgically tied
fallopian tubes might look like here. When semen is ejaculated into the
vagina during sexual intercourse, sperm cells can enter the uterus. Because the fallopian tubes are now
tied, the sperm cells can’t enter the fallopian tubes to fertilize an egg cell. The egg cell also can’t be released
to the uterus because its path is now blocked. So, in this case, the sperm and egg
cells can’t combine and so fertilization doesn’t occur. And if no fertilization occurs,
then there can’t be a pregnancy.
Therefore, the impact of surgically
tying the fallopian tubes is given by answer choice (A). The ovum, egg cell, will not be
able to travel through the fallopian tubes to be fertilized.
