Submitted by RedditScoutBoy t3_zm4pz1 in askscience
dkysh t1_j0aragh wrote
Reply to comment by Snapple207 in Will my kids inherit the genetic mutations that I aquire during my lifetime? by RedditScoutBoy
The sperm cells themselves are very short-lived. However, they do originate from spermatogonial stem cells that keep on replicating theough all your life.
In a cartoon, these stem cells divide into two cells. One of these daughter cells (cell A) keeps being a stem cell and the other not (cell B), begining a chain of divisions into further daughter cells that end up being a bunch of sperm.
New mutations appearing on cell B will only be found in one "round" of sperm. Mutations appearing in cell A are there to stay in all future rounds.
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