By necessity, the life cycle of all living things on earth includes reproduction. The life of cells, and of whole organisms is a continuum from generation to generation. All living cells grow and divide and produce cells like themselves called daughter cells. Reproduction in humans is a very complicated system of biological processes that eventually produces a new organism. One mission of the Campion Fund is to inform and educate the non- reproductive scientist about the fundamental molecular biology of reproduction. As we are focusing our efforts in 2023 -2024 on pregnancy and birth, and particularly human birth, we are introducing a series of informative blogs describing the major events of the pathways involved in these physiological events. Over the next six months we will present the current understanding of six important processes vital to human reproduction. These processes are highly complex. New aspects of these biological mechanisms are still being studied and thus our knowledge is constantly changing. Like all complex biological systems, human reproduction is not always perfect.
The topics of our blogs are: 1. Fertilization: The egg and sperm fuse 2. Implantation: The interaction between uterus and embryo 3. Organogenesis: How fetal organs develop and maternal physiological response to early pregnancy 4. Later pregnancy: fetal growth, organ maturation, and systematic maternal changes 5. Birth: The critical passage from fetal life to newborn infant’s first breath 6. Life outside the womb: physiological changes in baby and mother and critical maternal infant bonding.
Because of my professional experience as a maternity nurse, nurse-midwife, physician, and scientist caring for many pregnant individuals and their families and researching aspects of the reproductive tract, I know that everyone has a desire to learn about pregnancy and birth in a detailed way. I also know that everyone is capable of learning and appreciating the complexities of human reproduction. This learning may be to simply appreciate that reproduction is complex, or it can be that the learner takes a deep dive to understand the process at the molecular level. Each type of leaning has equal value as a non-scientist discovers these biological processes. Reproduction is critical for the survival of humans on earth and it is vital that all of us understand the complex biology of pregnancy and birth.
The first educational blog on Fertilization will be launched soon. It will discuss the complexities of the fusion of egg and sperm which takes time. The sperm does not fuse with the egg in a moment but during a process takes many hours to complete. Look for the new educational blog series.