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ICSE Question Bank
2018Q1(h)(v)The Reproductive System
Odd one outHard1 mark
1(h)

Choose the ODD one out from the following terms given and name the CATEGORY to which the others belong:

Prostate gland, Cowper’s gland, Seminal vesicle, Seminiferous tubules

Topic: Male accessory glands

Previous-year question practice database

Answer

Exam answer

Odd one out: SEMINIFEROUS TUBULES. Category of the others: ACCESSORY REPRODUCTIVE GLANDS OF THE MALE.

Explanation

The prostate, Cowper’s glands and the seminal vesicles are the three ACCESSORY GLANDS of the male reproductive system. All three add ALKALINE secretions to the semen — providing a medium for the sperms, neutralising the acidity of the urethra and vagina, and supplying fructose for energy.

The SEMINIFEROUS TUBULES are not a gland at all: they are the coiled tubes inside the testis where the SPERMS THEMSELVES ARE PRODUCED.

THE DISTINCTION: three make the FLUID, one makes the CELLS.

Note the related pair inside the testis, often confused: SEMINIFEROUS TUBULES make the sperms, LEYDIG CELLS make the hormone testosterone.

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