Female Pelvis & Breast
Left ovary
A small almond-shaped organ on the left pelvic wall. It holds the ovarian follicles, releases an oocyte at ovulation, and secretes oestrogen and progesterone.
How to spot it. A small almond-shaped organ against the left pelvic wall, held by the ovarian and suspensory ligaments.
What it does. Contains the follicles from which oocytes are released, and produces oestrogen and progesterone.
Where it sits. Not directly attached to the uterine tube: the fimbriae sweep over it to collect the released oocyte.
NEET points
Class 12 · Unit VI · Reproduction · Human Reproduction
- A pair, each about 2 to 4 cm long, held to the pelvic wall and to the uterus by ligaments. They produce the ovum and the steroid hormones oestrogen and progesterone.
- At birth each ovary holds one to two million primary oocytes, already arrested in prophase I; about 60,000 to 80,000 primary follicles remain in each at puberty.
- The primary oocyte completes meiosis I only at ovulation, giving a secondary oocyte and the first polar body — an unequal division. Meiosis II is completed only if a sperm enters.
- The follicle left behind becomes the corpus luteum, whose progesterone maintains the endometrium.
Chapter numbering moved when NCERT rationalised its books in 2023 and the NTA has revised the NEET syllabus since, so this maps by unit and title. It is a study aid, not a syllabus.