The difference between a sperm and egg or ovum is that sperm is the male gamete which is elongated and motile while the egg is the female gamete which is rounded and nonmotile.
There are many differences between egg and sperm. Sperm is the male gamete produced in the males while the egg is the female gamete produced in the females only. Sperm is elongated in shape while the egg is rounded or oval in shape. Sperm is motile while the egg is nonmotile. A sperm is divided into different parts known as head, neck, middle piece and tail.
Mitochondria of sperm are found in the middle piece. They are spirally arranged and form a compact body while mitochondria of eggs are scattered in the cytoplasm.
A sperm is small-sized while an egg is large sized. A sperm can move while eggs cannot move.
The cytoplasm of sperm is present in a small amount because the size of sperm is small, but the egg contains abundant cytoplasm. The nucleoplasm of the egg is also abundantly called a germinal vesicle.
The nucleus of the sperm contains either x or Y chromosome while the nucleus of an egg contains only X chromosomes.
A centriole is present in the egg while it is absent in sperm. Sperms are produced in testis of the males while eggs are produced in the ovaries of females.
In a male, millions of sperms are released in one ejaculate while in females, only one egg is produced in one month. Rarely, two or three eggs may be produced.
One spermatogonium divides to form four sperms while one oogonium forms only one egg.
Sperms are morphologically divided into the tail, middle piece, neck, and head while the egg is not morphologically divided into parts.
Sperms are surrounded by cell membrane only while eggs are surrounded by the additional egg envelope.
The process of sperms formation and release is not cyclic in males. Sperms go to form, mixed with the secretions of glands to form semen and release during ejaculation while the process of egg formation is cyclic in females. One mature egg is released from the ovary in the middle of the menstrual cycle of the female.
It is the sperm which has the capability to decide the gender of the baby which will be born after fertilization while egg does not have the capability to decide the gender of the next progeny.
Comparison Chart
| Basis | Sperm | Ovum |
| Definition | Sperm is a male gamete produced only in men in humans. | An egg is a female gamete produced only in women in human beings. |
| Size | Sperm is small in size. | The egg is large in size. |
| Mobility | Sperms can move inside the female genital tract. | Eggs are not able to move. |
| Morphology | Morphologically, sperms are divided into the middle piece, tail, head, and neck. | Eggs are not further divided into parts morphologically. |
| Mitochondria | Mitochondria are spirally arranged in the middle piece of the sperm. | In the egg, mitochondria are dispersed in the cytoplasm. |
| Cytoplasm | Sperms have a small amount of cytoplasm because of small size. | Eggs have abundant cytoplasm because of large size. The nucleoplasm of the egg is called a germinal vesicle. |
| Types of chromosomes | Its nucleus may contain X or Y chromosome. | Its nucleus contains only X chromosomes. |
| Centrioles | Centrioles are present in sperms. | Centrioles are absent in eggs. |
| Generated in | Sperms are generated in testis . | Eggs are matured and released from ovaries. |
| Production from | One spermatogonium divides to form four sperms. | One oogonium matures to form one egg. |
| Surrounded by | Sperms are surrounded by cell membrane only. | Eggs are surrounded by additional egg envelops. |
| Nature of production | Sperm production process cyclic in nature. | Eggs production and release are cyclic in nature. |
What are sperms?
Sperm is taken from the Greek word “sperm” which is meant for seed. Sperm is a male gamete which is produced in the testis of males. The size of human sperm is 60-micron meter approximately. The shape of human sperm is elongated. It is morphologically divided into head, middle piece, neck, and tail. In men, millions of sperms are released in one ejaculate. Sperms are mixed with the secretions of glands to form semen which is then released via ejaculation. The human sperm is the smallest known cell in the anatomy, and that is why it contains a small amount of cytoplasm. Sperms can move in the female genital tract, and finally, one sperm fertilizes the ovum. Sperms contain two types of chromosomes in its nucleus, i.e., X and Y chromosomes. If an X containing sperm fertilizes the egg, the zygote to be formed will be a baby girl. If a Y chromosome containing sperm fertilizes the egg, the zygote to be formed will be a baby boy.
What is Ovum?
Eggs are the female gametes which are produced in the ovaries of the females. Oogonia are formed in the ovaries even before the birth of a baby girl. After puberty, one oogonium matures to form one egg in one month. Ovum or egg is matured in the middle of the menstrual cycle of the female. Thus a female is fertile only for 12 to 24 hours a month when her egg is matured, and after 24 hours, this egg is either fertilized or regressed. The human egg is a large-sized cell, and thus it has abundant cytoplasm. Egg also has additional coverings.
In the nucleus of the egg, only X chromosomes are present. That is why the egg does not have gender determining the ability of the next progeny.
Key differences
- Sperms are the male gametes produced in the testes while eggs are female gametes produced in the ovaries of the females.
- Sperms are elongated in shape, and small-sized while eggs are rounded in shape and large sized.
- Sperms are motile. They can move while eggs do not have the ability to move.
- Sperm may contain X or Y chromosome in its nucleus while an egg contains an only X chromosome.
- Sperm production and release is not a cyclic process while eggs production and release is a cyclic process.
Conclusion
Eggs and sperms both are gamete cells in human beings. Sperms are male gametes while eggs are female gametes. Although both are gametes, both have many differences in morphology, types of chromosomes, nature of production, size and other properties. It is compulsive to know the differences between sperms and eggs. In the above article, we learned the clear differences between sperms and eggs.