What do gametes carry?

Gametes carry half the genetic information of an individual because they are formed through a process called meiosis. In sexual reproduction, each parent contributes one gamete (sperm from the male and egg from the female), and these gametes combine during fertilization to form a zygote. This zygote then contains a full set of genetic information, half of which is inherited from each parent.

The reason gametes carry only half the genetic information is due to the reduction in chromosome number during meiosis. In humans, for example, somatic cells (non-reproductive cells) contain 46 chromosomes, organized in 23 pairs. However, gametes are haploid, meaning they contain only 23 chromosomes—one from each pair. This ensures that when the sperm and egg fuse, the resulting zygote has the correct diploid number of chromosomes, maintaining the species' chromosome count through generations.