Question

How many autosomes are present in the ovum of a human female?
(a)22
(b)22 pairs
(c)23 pairs
(d)44 pairs

Answer 1

Hint: The chromosomes are divided into two groups, which are autosomes and sex chromosomes (also known as allosomes). Humans have 23 pairs of chromosomes, which makes a total of 46 chromosomes, in which 22 pairs are autosomes and 2 are sex chromosomes.

Complete answer:
A normal human cell has 22 pairs of autosomes and 2 sex chromosomes, but the ovum is formed by the meiosis due to which they have only the half number of chromosomes, which means 22 autosomes (11 pairs) and 1 sex chromosome.

Additional Information: -Autosomes are also called as homologous chromosomes, but the chromosomes of the 23rd pair consist of two X chromosomes in men and one X chromosome and Y chromosome in the men
-Because of this women have 23 homologous chromosome pairs and men have only 22. In the ovum, the X chromosome is constantly depicted as the 23rd chromosome and in a sperm cell, either an X or a Y chromosome can be present.
Ovum is the largest cell in the human body with a diameter of about 120 micrometers. Male sperm cells are the smallest and it would take 14,000 to 15,000 sperm to equal the ovum.
So, the correct answer is ‘22’.

Note: -There is a unique condition wherein some humans a different sexual development known as the intersex is present, which can be due to an allosome which is neither XX nor XY.
-The ovum has the largest number of mitochondria which is necessary for energy production in the cell. After the process of fertilization, these mitochondria will provide the energy to the egg for the replication and development of the embryo.