Compare monocotyledons' embryonic endosperm to dicotyledons' prephotosynthesis food storage system
Fertilization and germination of seeds.
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Transcript
NARRATOR: Each tiny pollen grain contains two nuclei. One nucleus is called the generative nucleus and will divide to produce two male sperm nuclei. The other nucleus is called the tube nucleus.
The receptive stigma chemically switches on the pollen grain which begins to generate a long tube with its own nucleus. It is important that this happens because the male gametes have to reach to ovules, which may be a considerable distance from the tip of the stigma.
The pollen tube grows down into the tissues of the stigma and down the length of the style. The tube eventually penetrates the ovule by passing through a small hole called the micropyle.
At the micropyle end of the ovule there is an egg cell nucleus flanked by two other nuclei. At the other end of the ovule are three nuclei left over from the previous meiotic divisions. In the center there is a diploid nucleus formed by the fusion of two polar nuclei.
The pollen tube releases one male gamete nucleus which fuses with the female egg cell nucleus. This is the moment of fertilization and produces a diploid zygote. This is the first cell of the new sporophyte, and it will divide repeatedly to produce the embryo.
The other male gamete nucleus fuses with the diploid polar nucleus to produce a unique triploid nucleus. From this new triploid nucleus a tissue called the endosperm develops.
It is in the endosperm tissue of wheat, barley, corn, oats, and rice that most of the seed's food reserves are stored. Thus, it is easy to see that endosperm is the single most important food source for mankind.
Not all plants produce a separate food store like endosperm for their embryos. It is a feature of most monocotyledons.
In dicotyledons, however, such as this young kidney bean plant, no such endosperm food store exists. The first two leaves of the embryo become swollen with food from the mother plant before the beans split the pod. This food store supports the young plant until it can make its own food through photosynthesis.
Within a tough seed coat there is an embryonic plant with its own special food store.
When a seed is ready to germinate, it takes in water, and metabolic activity begins. Food stores, which mostly consist of starch, are mobilized by enzymes produced by the embryo.
Within this dicotyledonous seed, the young root, known as the radical, can be seen clearly. The young shoot is known as the plumule and emerges after the root.
On some monocotyledons, the plumule is protected by a coleoptile. This protective cap is clearly visible on young corn plants since it is left behind once the shoot reaches the surface.
The receptive stigma chemically switches on the pollen grain which begins to generate a long tube with its own nucleus. It is important that this happens because the male gametes have to reach to ovules, which may be a considerable distance from the tip of the stigma.
The pollen tube grows down into the tissues of the stigma and down the length of the style. The tube eventually penetrates the ovule by passing through a small hole called the micropyle.
At the micropyle end of the ovule there is an egg cell nucleus flanked by two other nuclei. At the other end of the ovule are three nuclei left over from the previous meiotic divisions. In the center there is a diploid nucleus formed by the fusion of two polar nuclei.
The pollen tube releases one male gamete nucleus which fuses with the female egg cell nucleus. This is the moment of fertilization and produces a diploid zygote. This is the first cell of the new sporophyte, and it will divide repeatedly to produce the embryo.
The other male gamete nucleus fuses with the diploid polar nucleus to produce a unique triploid nucleus. From this new triploid nucleus a tissue called the endosperm develops.
It is in the endosperm tissue of wheat, barley, corn, oats, and rice that most of the seed's food reserves are stored. Thus, it is easy to see that endosperm is the single most important food source for mankind.
Not all plants produce a separate food store like endosperm for their embryos. It is a feature of most monocotyledons.
In dicotyledons, however, such as this young kidney bean plant, no such endosperm food store exists. The first two leaves of the embryo become swollen with food from the mother plant before the beans split the pod. This food store supports the young plant until it can make its own food through photosynthesis.
Within a tough seed coat there is an embryonic plant with its own special food store.
When a seed is ready to germinate, it takes in water, and metabolic activity begins. Food stores, which mostly consist of starch, are mobilized by enzymes produced by the embryo.
Within this dicotyledonous seed, the young root, known as the radical, can be seen clearly. The young shoot is known as the plumule and emerges after the root.
On some monocotyledons, the plumule is protected by a coleoptile. This protective cap is clearly visible on young corn plants since it is left behind once the shoot reaches the surface.