Question

Define polyspermy and explain why it is detrimental to an organism

Answer 1

In biology, polyspermy describes an egg that has been fertilized by more than one sperm. Diploid organisms normally contain two copies of each chromosome, one from each parent. The cell resulting from polyspermy, on the other hand, contains three or more copies of each chromosome—one from the egg and one each from multiple sperm. Usually, the result is an inviable zygote. This may occur because sperm are too efficient at reaching and fertilizing eggs due to the selective pressures of sperm competition. Such a situation is often deleterious to the female: in other words, the male-male competition among sperm spills over to create sexual conflict.[1]

Answer 2

Polyspermy is an egg which has been fertilized by more than one sperm. Usually , the result obtained will be an inviable zygote. This may occur  because  sperm are too efficient at reaching and fertilizing eggs .In some species, polyspermy is allowed to happen resulting in more than one sperm entering the egg creating viable offspring without  detrimental effects.                                      

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