Summary
The association of the two sperm cells inBrassica napus pollen following the generative cell division was investigated. The generative cell during division is located in the center of the pollen grain, within the vegetative cell. The space present between the two cells is slightly irregular as seen following standard glutaraldehyde fixation. After completion of mitosis vesicles appear in the equatorial plane, coalescing centripetally to form a cell plate which fuses with the membrane of the generative cell, dividing it in two sperm cells. They are isolated from the vegetative cell by the space between the two cell membranes and are separated from each other by a similar space resulting from the cell plate formed during cytokinesis.
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Charzynska, M., Murgia, M., Milanesi, C. et al. Origin of sperm cell association in the “male germ unit” ofBrassica pollen. Protoplasma 149, 1–4 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01623975
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01623975