A reservoir of spermatozoa forms, at a discrete location, to hold and liberate spermatozoa in a gradual fashion. After fertilization has occurred, zygotes are passively transported to the uterus by a series of closely coordinated mechanical events where activities of cilia and smooth muscle predominate.

Fertilization occurs in the fallopian tubes Once fertilization takes place, this newly fertilized cell is called a zygote. From here, the zygote will move down the fallopian tube and into the uterus. The zygote then burrows into the uterus lining. This is called implantation.

When these two haploid cells join, they form a single diploid cell that contains all necessary chromosomes. The zygote then travels down the fallopian tube to the uterus. As it travels, its cells rapidly divide and it becomes a blastocyst.

Fertilization usually takes place in a fallopian tube that links an ovary to the uterus. If the fertilized egg successfully travels down the fallopian tube and implants in the uterus, an embryo starts growing.

It takes just one sperm to fertilize a woman’s egg. Keep in mind, though, for each sperm that reaches the egg, there are millions that don’t.

Getting pregnant The life span of sperm after ejaculation depends on the circumstances. Ejaculated sperm remain viable for several days within the female reproductive tract. Fertilization is possible as long as the sperm remain alive — up to five days. Sperm can also be preserved for decades when semen is frozen.

People who are born male and living as men cannot get pregnant. A transgender man or nonbinary person may be able to, however. It is only possible for a person to be pregnant if they have a uterus. The uterus is the womb, which is where the fetus develops.

“In this definition, men do not have these types of periods.” However, Brito notes that men’s testosterone levels can vary, and some factors can influence testosterone levels. As these hormones shift and fluctuate, men may experience symptoms.

In all of the vast animal kingdom spanning the planet, seahorses (and their pipefish and sea dragon relatives) are the only species whose male members give birth to young. A male and female seahorse pair can have multiple broods.

As most F2M transgender men will also undergo bilateral oophorectomy, whereas the ovaries it would not be transplanted, it would allow the retrieval of elongated ovarian vascular pedicles to facilitate the implantation.

This may be in the same gonad (an ovotestis), or the person might have 1 ovary and 1 testis. The person may have XX chromosomes, XY chromosomes, or both. The external genitals may be ambiguous or may appear to be female or male. This condition used to be called true hermaphroditism.

Medical ethicists have estimated that a transplant could cost patients up to $100,000. Nevertheless, Johannesson hopes that more patients with uterine-factor infertility become aware of this procedure.

The transplanted uterus can come from a deceased donor or a living donor. A living uterus donor gives her uterus for the purpose of transplantation to a female recipient. A deceased uterus donor is a female that is willing to donate her uterus after death.

Uterus transplants give women a chance to deliver a baby. About 1 in 5,000 women is born without a uterus, according to Dr. Uma Perni, a maternal-fetal medicine specialist involved in the clinical trials of uterus transplants at Cleveland Clinic.

Uterus transplants are expensive, with Baylor’s estimate putting the cost around $200,000, and they’re not currently covered by insurance. (Baylor is covering the cost of the transplants in the clinical trial.) There’s still a long way to go before such transplants can be offered as a standard treatment.

Any woman between 18 and 36 who suffers Absolute Uterine Factor Infertility could be eligible for a womb transplant in the future. When womb transplantation becomes a safe and practical procedure, it could benefit thousands of women.