Secretions of acrosome help to dissolve:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → Zona pellucida and plasma membrane
The acrosome is the cap on the sperm head. It holds enzymes. When the sperm reaches the ovum, these enzymes are released and make a path through the layers of the ovum.
(1) Layers of perivitelline space — Incorrect. The perivitelline space is only the gap between the zona pellucida and the plasma membrane of the ovum. It is a space, not a layer to be dissolved.
(2) Layers of Graafian follicle — Incorrect. The ovum has already left the Graafian follicle at ovulation, before the sperm arrives.
(3) Corona radiata and its layers — Incorrect. NCERT does not say that the acrosome dissolves the corona radiata. It names the zona pellucida and the plasma membrane.
(4) Zona pellucida and plasma membrane — Correct. The secretions of the acrosome help the sperm enter the cytoplasm of the ovum through these two layers.
NCERT Extract:
Fertilisation and Implantation – “… The process of fusion of a sperm with an ovum is called fertilisation. During fertilisation, a sperm comes in contact with the zona pellucida layer of the ovum (Figure 2.10) and induces changes in the membrane that block the entry of additional sperms. Thus, it ensures that only one sperm can fertilise an ovum. The secretions of the acrosome help the sperm enter into the cytoplasm of the ovum through the zona pellucida and the plasma membrane.”