During the first 12 hours after
conception, the fertilized egg cell remains a
single cell. After approximately 30 hours, it
divides from 1 cell into 2 and 15 hours later,
the 2 cells divide into 4. And at the end of
3 days, the fertilized egg cell has become a
berry-like structure made up of 16 cells. This
structure is called a morula, which is Latin
for mulberry. The cells continue to divide 8
or 9 days following conception into a blastocyst.
Although
it is only the size of a pinhead, the blastocyst
is composed of hundreds of cells. The blastocyst
is slowly carried by tiny hair-like projections
in the fallopian tube called cilia toward the
uterus. During the critically important process
of implantation, it must attach itself to the
uterine lining where it will be able to get nourishment
from the mother’s blood
supply. If the blastocyst is unable to attach,
the pregnancy will fail to survive.
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