TYPES OF EGGS

❖Fully developed female sexual cell is ovum( egg).

❖They are large in size and inert as compared to sperm.
❖Egg cell has 3 important functions:
• Supply haploid set of chromosomes to future embryo.
• Provide most of the cytoplasm to future embryo.
• Supplies food reserves to the developing embryo in oviparous animals.
❖The eggs of diff animals vary widely in size , size and arrangement of
yolk, and in their covering.
 AMOUNT OF YOLK
• MICROLECITHAL OR OLIGOLECITHAL EGG:
These are small sized eggs which contain small amount of yolk.
e.g: Amphioxus, tunicates, hydra, eutherian mammals.
• MESOLECITHAL EGGS
The eggs contain moderate amount of yolk.
Yolk generally concentrated in one pole called vegetal pole.
e.g: Annelid worms, molluscs, petromyzontia, dipnoi and amphibia.
• MEGALECITHAL, MACROLECITHAL, POLYLECITHAL EGGS
The eggs contain large amount of yolk.
Found in Myxinoidea, cartilaginous and bony fishes, reptiles, birds,
protherian mammals( echidna and platypus).
BASED ON DISTRIBUTION OF YOLK
• ISOLECITHAL OR HOMOLECITHAL EGGS
In microlecithal eggs, the amount of yolk is very little and is uniformly
distributed throughout the egg cytoplasm.
Eggs with evenly distributed throughout the egg cytoplasm.
e.g: amphioxus.
• TELOLECITHAL EGGS
Yolk is not uniformly distributed.
Mesolecithal and macrolecithal eggs are telolecithal.
Due to gravity yolk tends to concentrate in the lower part of egg( veg p) and
nucleus and active cytoplasm with little or no yolk at the opposite side.
Two types:
• Moderately telolecithal egg: This type contain moderate amount of yolk
which is distributed unevenly, due to high concentration of yolk in the
vegetal hemisphere the nucleus is shifted more towards animal pole. E.g:
amphibia, petromyzontia, Dipnoi.
• Extremely telolecithal eggs: In megalecithal eggs of bony fishes, cartilaginous
fishes, reptiles and birds, due to the heavy deposition of yolk,entire vegetal
and major portions of animal hemisphere are occupied by yolk, and
cytoplasm and nucleus remain confined to a small cap at the animal pole. Eg:
eggs of birds, reptiles, bony fishes.
• CENTROLECITHAL EGGS
Amount of yolk is large and is concentrated in the centre of the egg
cell.
Active cytoplasm forms a thin peripheral layer around the yolk.
E,g: insects and some coelentrates
PRESENCE OR ABSENCE OF SHELL
• CLEIDOIC EGGS
Eggs which are laid on dry land and protected by calcareous shells,
which are effectively isolated from outside environment and thus
preventing loss of moisture.
They are relatively large and internally fertilized.e.g: reptiles and birds
• NON CLEIDOIC EGGS
Eggs are not protected by shells.
They absorb water and minerals from environment.
Development is internal or in a aquatic medium
In many cases the egg hatches into a larva. E.g: amphibian egg
 TYPE OF DEVELOPMENT
• DETERMINATE OR MOSAIC EGGS
In the development of certain animals, fate of every part of egg become fixed,
without liable to change before or at the time of fertilization.
If a particular portion of egg is removed , the developing embryo will be
deficient in a particular organ.
Once it has become determined, the egg behaves like a mosaic, in which the
fate of egg parts cannot be changed after fertilization .e,g: Annelida,
Arthropoda, Mollusc, Tunicates.
• INDETERMINATE OR REGULATIVE EGGS
There is no predetermination and the fate of various egg portions is usually not
fixed during the first two cleavages.
When the four blastomeres are separated each develops as a whole embryo
and not a partial one. E.g: Coelenterates, Echinoderms and most chordates
EGG MEMBRANES
• Ovum is covered by plasma membrane, in addition to this eggs are
surrounded by one or more additional envelopes called egg membranes.
• They are produced outside the plasma membrane.
Based on their origin egg membranes are classified into 3 types:
➢PRIMARY EGG MEMBRANES
Develop in the ovary between the oocyte and follicle cells around the plasma
membrane.
Secreted either by follicle cells or oocyte.
Based on the structure they are of different types:
❑VITELLINE MEMBRANE
Double layered membrane made of inner rough and outer fine fibrous layer.
Usually thin and transparent and close to plasma membrane.
Primary egg membrane of insects, molluscs, amphibians and birds.
❑ZONA RADIATA
Striated appearance representing degraded microvilli.
Later convert into micropyles through which spermatozoa can reach egg
during fertilization.
Present in bony fishes, oocyte of sharks, amphibians and reptiles.
❑ZONA PELLUCIDA
It is modified from zona radiata without striations.
It is found in eggs of mammals and is formed of secretions from ovum
and follicle cells.
❑JELLY ENVELOPE
Much thicker covering made of non living jelly coat.
Present in the eggs of echinoderm and many marine invertebrates.
➢SECONDARY EGG MEMBRANES
Secreted by the follicle cells of the ovary.
In some groups they are not found, but in some they are present as
basement membranes formed from follicle cells.
Sometimes present as chitinous shells surrounding the eggs as in insects,
ascidians, cyclostomes and called chorion.
Absent in eggs of urodele amphibians, reptiles and birds.
Mammalian egg released from ovary is surrounded by a layer of follicle
cells outside the zona pellusida and is called corona radiata, it is not a
true membrane because as the egg descends through oviduct its cells are
peeled off.
➢TERTIARY EGG MEMBRANES
Formed by oviduct or other accessory parts of maternal genital organs.
Absent in mammals except prototherians.
Different vertebrates contain different types of tertiary envelops:
❖In sharks and rays egg is surrounded by albumen and horny capsule
which serve to entangle the eggs among the sea weeds.
Secreted by shell glands of oviduct.
❖In amphibians eggs are surrounded by jelly secreted by oviduct.
It helps egg adhere to support when released in water.
❖In reptiles and birds the eggs are enveloped by albumen, shell
membrane and calcareous shells.
Albumen is the white of egg. It forms two dense strands known as
chalazae to keep the yolk in the centre.
Two shell membranes( inner and outer) are separated by air space at
the blunt end of the egg. Inner membrane adheres to the white and outer
to shell.
Calcareous shell is the outer most and is composed of calcium carbonate
and have thousands of pores for exchange of gases.
FUNCTIONS OF EGG ENVELOPES
• Protections to the contents of egg or developing embryo from
variable pH, temp, radiations, pollutions, danger of desiccation,
mechanical injuries etc.
• Provide buoyancy
• Prevent polyspermy.
• Prevent self fertilization.
TYPE STUDY =FROG EGG
• Ovum is spherical in shape.
• Mesolecithal
• Moderately Telolecithal
• Non cledoic
• 1.75-2 mm diameter
• It is surrounded by 3 layers –outer jelly coat, middle vitelline membrane, inner plasma
membrane.
• Jelly coat is 3 layers made of albumin.
❖Jelly coat protects egg from mechanical injury.
❖Make the eggs adhere to each other and to submerged objects.
❖Not readily washed off.
❖Do not allow fungi and virus to creep in.
❖As the jelly is distasteful, it prevents the egg from being eaten by aquatic organisms.
• Vitelline membrane is made of mucopolysaccharides.
• Ooplasm is of two regions: central endoplasm and peripheral cortex(outer ectoplasm)
• Cortex is gel like viscous layer and is granular. It shows the presence of
cortical granules and brown pigment granules.
• Cortical granules are seen as a layer close to plasma membrane.
• It is 2-3 microns in thickness. It is thick around animal pole and thin towards
vegetal pole.
• Peripheral cytoplasm is a colloidal complex of proteins, phospholipids, RNA
and calcium ions.
• In the animal half brown pigment granules and their number decreases
towards vegetal pole( so white in colour).
• Cortical granules are secreted by Golgi complex which contain acid
mucopolysaccharides. At the time of fertilization these granules break and
fertilization membranes are formed.
• Cortex is stable and remains in same position throughout development.
• Cortex is the site of morphogenetic patterning relating to polarity, bilateral
symmetry and organisation of developing egg.
• Endoplasm is the inner portion with nucleus.
• It is colloidal in nature and simple organic compounds to large
inclusions like mitochondria, Golgi bodies, centrioles, ER etc. All these
inclusions are freely movable in natural conditions due to cytoplasmic
streaming or cyclosis.
• It contain a cup shaped mass of white yolk platelets called vitelline
cupola occupying most of the vegetal pole.
• Egg has well marked polarity- animal half and vegetal half.
• Animal half is dark brown or black in colour. Nucleus or germinal
vesicle lies in the animal half.
• The vegetal half is white or pale yellow in colour with yolk platelets and
little pigment.
• Line connecting animal pole and vegetal pole is median axis or polar
axis or animal vegetal axis of the egg.