Abed Chaudhury, Commonwealth Scientific and Research Organization (CSIRO) Plant Industry, Canberra, Australia
Published online: April 2001
DOI: 10.1038/npg.els.0002040
Stamen and pollen development is central to the male reproductive process in higher plants. A stamen consists of a tube‐like filament topped by an anther with sacs within which pollen grains develop. Haploid male spores produced in the anther develop into mature pollen grains.
Keywords: male fertility; pollen; anther; stamen; tapetum; male sterility; hybrid seed
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Figure 1.
Development and maturation of pollen in the anther. Schematic representation of an Arabidopsis flower with filaments and developed anther. Anther cross‐section shows epidermis (E), tapetum (T), pollen sac (PS), stomium (St) and endothecium (En); these parts of the anther are explained in the Glossary. Following meiosis, a tetrad is formed with four haploid microspores. Subsequently the microspores are released by the action of callase, an enzyme that degrades the wall of the tetrad. The free microspores then undergo one round of mitosis, producing a vegetative cell nucleus and a generative cell nucleus. The generative cell divides again to produce two sperm cells. |
Further Reading
Chaudhury AM (1993) Nuclear genes controlling male fertility. Plant Cell 5: 1277–1283.
Goldberg RB, Beals TP and Sanders PM (1993) Anther development: basic principles and practical applications. Plant Cell 5: 1217–1229.
McCormick S (1993) Male gametophyte development. Plant Cell 5: 1265–1275.
Weberling F (1989) Morphology of Flowers and Inflorescences. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
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