Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Fertilization01:38

Fertilization

92.2K
During fertilization, an egg and sperm cell fuse to create a new diploid structure. In humans, the process occurs once the egg has been released from the ovary, and travels into the fallopian tubes. The process requires several key steps: 1) sperm present in the genital tract must locate the egg; 2) once there, sperm need to release enzymes to help them burrow through the protective zona pellucida of the egg; and 3) the membranes of a single sperm cell and egg must fuse, with the sperm...
92.2K
Cleavage and Blastulation01:33

Cleavage and Blastulation

50.7K
After a large-single-celled zygote is produced via fertilization, the process of cleavage occurs while zygotes travel through the uterine tube. Cleavage is a mitotic cell division that does not result in growth. With each round of successive cell division, daughter cells get increasingly smaller.
50.7K
Zygotic Development And Stem Cell Formation01:10

Zygotic Development And Stem Cell Formation

7.0K
The development of all multicellular organisms starts with the fusion of haploid cells called sperm and egg to form a diploid zygote. A zygote is a totipotent cell that can develop into a complete organism. The zygote undergoes cell division or cleavage to form an 8-cell mass. Until this stage, the cells are spherical, loosely attached, and remain totipotent. Totipotent cells are capable of developing both the embryonic and the extraembryonic tissues. However, as they continue to divide, they...
7.0K
Development of the Sexual Organs in the Embryo and Fetus01:15

Development of the Sexual Organs in the Embryo and Fetus

4.1K
Development of the reproductive organs in an embryo starts from a bipotential state. This means the early embryo can develop either male or female reproductive organs. The formation of these organs begins with the growth of gonadal ridges that arise from the intermediate mesoderm during the fifth week of development.
Near the gonadal ridges, two duct systems are present: the mesonephric ducts (Wolffian ducts) and paramesonephric ducts (Müllerian ducts). These ducts form the basis for the...
4.1K
Functions of Life01:23

Functions of Life

27.5K
Human life is characterized by a variety of functions that are essential for survival and well-being. These functions include metabolism, movement, development, growth and reproduction.
Metabolism
The basic function of an organism is to consume energy and molecules in foods, convert some of it into fuel for movement, sustain body functions, and build and maintain body structures. There are two types of reactions that accomplish this: anabolism and catabolism.
Anabolism is the process whereby...
27.5K
Gastrulation01:56

Gastrulation

67.9K
Gastrulation establishes the three primary tissues of an embryo: the ectoderm, mesoderm, and endoderm. This developmental process relies on a series of intricate cellular movements, which in humans transforms a flat, “bilaminar disc” composed of two cell sheets into a three-tiered structure. In the resulting embryo, the endoderm serves as the bottom layer, and stacked directly above it is the intermediate mesoderm, and then the uppermost ectoderm. Respectively, these tissue strata...
67.9K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Beyond Infanticide: How Psychological Accounts of Persons Can Justify Harming Infants.

The New bioethics : a multidisciplinary journal of biotechnology and the body·2018
Same journal

Capable, Unbearably Suffering, and Excluded: People With Mental Illness and the Ethics of Canada's Assisted-Dying Regime.

Bioethics·2026
Same journal

Transhumanism Without Transindividuation in the Age Without Epochality: Stiegler, Vice, and Radical Human Enhancement.

Bioethics·2026
Same journal

Between Safeguard and Constraint: Navigating Patient Autonomy in Protective Laws for Medical Assistance in Dying.

Bioethics·2026
Same journal

Bioethics of Space Exploration: Life, Risk, and Responsibility Beyond Earth.

Bioethics·2026
Same journal

The Concept of Harm in Medical Ethics.

Bioethics·2026
Same journal

On the Destruction and Humanitarianisation of the Health System in Gaza and the Need for a Biopolitical Bioethics.

Bioethics·2026
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Feb 25, 2026

Single Cell Collection of Trophoblast Cells in Peri-implantation Stage Human Embryos
08:50

Single Cell Collection of Trophoblast Cells in Peri-implantation Stage Human Embryos

Published on: June 12, 2020

6.8K

Human organisms begin to exist at fertilization.

Calum Miller, Alexander Pruss

    Bioethics
    |August 9, 2017
    PubMed
    Summary
    This summary is machine-generated.

    Human organisms may begin existence at fertilization, refuting claims that egg cells survive this process. This research explores biological facts and essentialism to support the zygote

    Keywords:
    abortionbeginning of lifefertilizationidentitylifeorganismspersonal identity

    More Related Videos

    Measuring Embryonic Viability and Brood Size in Caenorhabditis elegans
    06:24

    Measuring Embryonic Viability and Brood Size in Caenorhabditis elegans

    Published on: February 24, 2023

    3.5K
    Protocol for Human Blastoids Modeling Blastocyst Development and Implantation
    12:09

    Protocol for Human Blastoids Modeling Blastocyst Development and Implantation

    Published on: August 10, 2022

    7.5K

    Related Experiment Videos

    Last Updated: Feb 25, 2026

    Single Cell Collection of Trophoblast Cells in Peri-implantation Stage Human Embryos
    08:50

    Single Cell Collection of Trophoblast Cells in Peri-implantation Stage Human Embryos

    Published on: June 12, 2020

    6.8K
    Measuring Embryonic Viability and Brood Size in Caenorhabditis elegans
    06:24

    Measuring Embryonic Viability and Brood Size in Caenorhabditis elegans

    Published on: February 24, 2023

    3.5K
    Protocol for Human Blastoids Modeling Blastocyst Development and Implantation
    12:09

    Protocol for Human Blastoids Modeling Blastocyst Development and Implantation

    Published on: August 10, 2022

    7.5K

    Area of Science:

    • Developmental Biology
    • Philosophy of Biology
    • Bioethics

    Background:

    • Eugene Mills argues human organisms do not begin at fertilization, positing egg cell persistence.
    • Mills' arguments are based on conceptual analysis and microscopic observation of fertilization.
    • The persistence of egg cells through fertilization is a key point of contention in developmental biology.

    Purpose of the Study:

    • To refute Eugene Mills' arguments regarding the persistence of egg cells post-fertilization.
    • To present evidence supporting the view that human organisms begin to exist at fertilization.
    • To explore the biological and philosophical implications for the beginning of human organism life.

    Main Methods:

    • Refutation of Mills' arguments concerning conceptual fallacies and direct observation.
    • Application of essentialism principles to the concept of biological identity.
    • Detailed analysis of biological and genetic facts surrounding fertilization and zygote formation.

    Main Results:

    • The study refutes the claim that egg cells persist through fertilization.
    • Evidence suggests that egg cells do not survive fertilization, but rather transform into zygotes.
    • Biological and genetic analyses support the distinct identity of the zygote.

    Conclusions:

    • It is plausible that human organisms begin to exist at fertilization.
    • There are grounds to consider the zygote as the initial stage of a human organism.
    • This conclusion has significant implications for the debate on when human personhood begins.