Immaculate conception in the animal kingdom and in humans

Immaculate conception, or parthenogenesis, is a modification of sexual reproduction, when the female gamete begins to develop into a new individual without the participation of the male gamete for fertilization. Parthenogenetic reproduction is widespread in the realm of animals, plants, and usually at the same time increases the rate of reproduction.

Parthenogenesis in animals and plants

Immaculate conception is of two kinds - haploid and diploid parthenogenesis, depending on the number of chromosomes in the gamete of the female. In many insects, in particular, for ants, wasps and bees, as a result of the first type of reproduction, different communities of organisms arise. With haploid parthenogenesis, meiosis occurs and haploid gametes are created. Of fertilized eggs, diploid females can develop, and unfertilized ovules develop haploid fertile males. In the honey bee, for example, the uterus lays such fertilized eggs that give the females (working individuals, uterus), and unfertilized eggs giving males (drones). Such a mechanism of reproduction in insects plays an adaptive role, because it can regulate the appearance of offspring depending on the type of gametes.

Diploid parthenogenesis occurs in aphids. In this case, female oocytes undergo a special form of meiosis - the chromosomes do not diverge, but pass into the egg cell, without the chromosomes there are polar bodies. The development of eggs is carried out in the maternal body, the newborn females are fully formed and do not hatch from the eggs. This process of live birth continues for several generations, until a cell appears that contains one X chromosome and all the autosomes. Parthenogenetic male develops from it. The main advantage of partogenesis for aphids is the rapid growth of the population, because its sexually mature members can lay eggs.

"Immaculate conception" in various forms is widespread in plants. One of them is called apomixis and is parthenogenesis, imitating sexual reproduction. This form of conception is observed in individual flowering plants, their diploid cell develops into a full embryo without the participation of the gamete of a male individual. In other cases there should be a pollen grains stimulating parthenogenesis; Pollen grains produce hormones necessary for the appearance of the embryo, and such cases are almost identical to sexual reproduction.

Parthenogenesis in humans

Forensic experts are well aware that when exposed to high temperatures, stressful situations and under extreme conditions, an egg cell of a woman can begin the process of division, even if it is not fertilized. There is an opinion that if a woman is ready to conceive, she can just stew for a while in the bath, and the egg activates the process of transformation into the body, but, most likely, it is not viable and will soon die.

In the ready-to- fertilize egg, there are 23 chromosomes that determine the sex.

"Immaculate conception" occurs when the mature female chromosomes are divided into two halves, forming in the egg 46 chromosomes, necessary for the birth of a new life. After this, the process of fragmentation and development of the embryo, but only the female sex, may begin.

According to doctors, parthenogenesis in humans occurs when there is a bacterium that lives in the body of insects, but it can migrate to the human body, causing the division of the egg and the formation of the embryo. The bacterium destroys the male embryos or converts them into female embryos.

There are already many cases where the sex of the human embryo has changed under the influence of extreme situations or in a hot climate, while the male embryo always changes to a female embryo, in another never occurs.

Previously, this phenomenon was not heard at all. In any case, the word "parthenogenesis" appeared recently. The Christians perceived the "immaculate conception" of the Virgin Mary as a miracle. And that it could be a normal pregnancy, it never occurred to anyone.