What happens at the moment of conception?
At the moment of conception, a male sperm unites with a female ovum. The single-celled entity formed by the sperm and oocyte (egg) is known as a zygote. At conception, the zygote has 46 chromosomes—23 from each parent, comprising approximately 50,000 genes—which combine to determine all of one’s physical characteristics, including sex, facial features, body type, and color of hair, eyes, and skin.
