What Are Gonads

Both men and women have gonads. In males, they are the testes, or testicles, the male sex glands that are part of the male reproductive system. They are located behind the penis in a pouch of skin called the scrotum. The female gonads, the ovaries, are a pair of reproductive glands.

What are the two basic functions of the gonads?

The two major functions of the gonads in the adult are steroid hormone production and gametogenesis. Reproductive hormones are also pivotal in sexual differentiation, fetal development, growth and sexual maturation.

Do gonads produce gametes?

But both sexes have gonads: In females the gonads are the ovaries, which make female gametes (eggs). The male gonads make male gametes (sperm).