Pollen Grain Development Flashcards
What is located inside each pollen sac?
A number of diploid microspore mother cells
Where are the microspore mother cells located?
Inside the pollen sac
What happens to the microspore mother cells inside each pollen sac?
They divide by meiosis to produce a cluster of four haploid cells called a tetrad
What is a tetrad?
A cluster of four haploid cells
How do the microspore mother cells divide?
By meiosis
What happens to each tetrad?
Each tetrad breaks up to form four separate haploid pollen grains
What are pollen grains also called?
Microspores
What are microspores more commonly called?
Pollen grains
What happens to each pollen grains formed from the breaking up of each tetrad?
They divide by mitosis while still in the pollen sac to produce two haploid nuclei, the tube and generative nuclei
What is formed by the mitotic division of the pollen grains while still in the pollen sac?
(3)
Two haploid nuclei
The tube nucleus
The generative nucleus
What forms the tube and generative nuclei?
The mitotic division of the pollen grains while still in the pollen sac
Are the tube and generative nuclei haploid or diploid?
They are both haploid
What is the function of the tube nucleus?
It forms the pollen tube and will then degenerate
What is the function of the generative nucleus?
It will divide by mitosis to form the male gametes (in the pollen sac or in the pollen tube)
What haploid nucleus forms the pollen tube?
The tube nucleus
