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Published online 18 June 2008 | Nature 453, 965 (2008) | doi:10.1038/453965a

News in Brief: Snapshot

Out of the ovary

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  • This yellow "object" is of course not a human egg. This is a drop of follicular fluid (apparently containing an egg) being expelled from the follicle. Still a great photo. Henry Malter

    • 18 Jun, 2008
    • Posted by: Henry Malter

  • "of course not a human egg" ? How do you say that? The surgeon says its an egg, New Scientist says its an egg - how come you know better?

    • 19 Jun, 2008
    • Posted by: Richard Dawson

  • Dawson, Malter is correct. The human "egg", or more correctly the oocyte itself measures at most 125 microns. If you can see that by the naked eye, I would be amazed. For more info, here is a good reference: Fertil Steril. 1995 Feb;63(2):404-6.: The relationship between size and maturation in vitro in the unstimulated human oocyte. Durinzi KL, Saniga EM, Lanzendorf SE.

    • 24 Jun, 2008
    • Posted by: Cecily Bishop