Video Transcript
How can syphilis be transferred
from person to person? (A) Through coughing and
sneezing. (B) Through contaminated water. (C) Through sexual contact. (D) Through contaminated food.
This question is asking us about
the sexually transmitted infection syphilis. In order to answer this, let’s
briefly go over the male and female reproductive systems and how human reproduction
works.
The job of the male reproductive
system is to make sperm and deliver it to the female reproductive system. Sperm is made in the testes, also
called the testicles, and mixes with different secretions to make a fluid called
semen. Semen can be ejaculated from the
penis during sexual intercourse into the vagina. We can see the vagina here as a
part of the female reproductive system. The sperm in the semen can then
move toward the Fallopian tube where it can fertilize an egg cell that was produced
by one of the ovaries. The fertilized egg can then implant
in the uterus and start a pregnancy.
Human reproduction involves sexual
contact in which the penis enters the vagina. Some bacterial or viral infections
can be transmitted, or transferred, during sexual contact. These are called sexually
transmitted infections, or STIs for short. An example of an STI is
syphilis. Syphilis can form sores or chancres
on the penis or in the vagina. These are filled with fluid that
contain syphilis bacteria. During sexual intercourse, these
chancres can ooze this fluid, which can infect another person.
Generally, syphilis is only spread
by sexual contact, so answer choices (A), (B), and (D) are incorrect. Therefore, the option that
correctly identifies how syphilis is transferred from person to person is given by
answer choice (C), through sexual contact.
