1
Cells, Microbes & Viruses / Re: Is the sperm or an egg a living organism?
« on: 01/03/2015 13:56:48 »
It would seem to me to be a requirement that any answer would only apply to a specific -and hypothetical-egg or sperm. It should be made clear that it is impossible to know if any sperm or egg is living or capable of life. For example the sperm and egg are comprised of materials that must be created through numerous biological processes. One of those processes is the replication of DNA. So in order to give a valid answer, one would have to understand the process of DNA replication and the odds of that process being successful with regard to the production of an egg or sperm. All DNA in the process of replication makes errors in nucleotide replication. Those errors number in the range of 100 thousand per replication of correctable replication errors and hundreds of non correctable errors. There is no proof the corrections are true to the original DNA on an atomic scale. Over numerous replications in a series of tens of generations based upon a starting DNA strand, that would amount to millions of DNA errors. So in order to answer the question, one would first have to determine if the DNA errors impact the ability of the sperm or egg to live or regenerate.
Data that is readily available indicates that most sperm and egg combinations do not produce living human life. So in most cases, no, the egg and sperm are not "functionally" alive even though they may be able to live through or too, fusion.
It would seem that because one cannot know if the DNA is capable of supporting life, one cannot simply make a statement that the sperm and egg are alive or will create life at fusion. To me the inference that should be drawn is that there is the possibility that the egg and sperm are comprised of living materials, but it is unknowable as to whether those materials exist in any one sample.
It would seem to be that any statement that claims that a sperm or egg is alive should be preceded by the statement that most do not produce human life and may not contain DNA compatible with human life. Any other statement would seem to be excessive conjecture.
Data that is readily available indicates that most sperm and egg combinations do not produce living human life. So in most cases, no, the egg and sperm are not "functionally" alive even though they may be able to live through or too, fusion.
It would seem that because one cannot know if the DNA is capable of supporting life, one cannot simply make a statement that the sperm and egg are alive or will create life at fusion. To me the inference that should be drawn is that there is the possibility that the egg and sperm are comprised of living materials, but it is unknowable as to whether those materials exist in any one sample.
It would seem to be that any statement that claims that a sperm or egg is alive should be preceded by the statement that most do not produce human life and may not contain DNA compatible with human life. Any other statement would seem to be excessive conjecture.