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Comparative development of the spermatozoids of cycads andGinkgo biloba

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Abstract

Cycads andGinkgo biloba are the only extant seed plants that produce flagellated male gametes. Superficially, the cells of both are similar in structure and function. In both the motile organelles arise from multicentriolar bodies, the blepharoplasts, and, in both forms, these give rise to a complex fibrous band, the multilayered structure (MLS), which bears numerous flagella. Generally speaking, these structures are much alike in cycads andGinkgo. However, there are marked differences in details of their development, particularly in the presence of a “nucellar beak” inGinkgo.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Missouri Botanical Garden, 63110, Saint Louis, MO, USA

    Knut J. Norstog

  2. Section of Plant Biology Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, 95616, Davis, CA, USA

    Ernest M. Gifford

  3. New York Botanical Garden, 10458, Bronx, NY, USA

    Dennis Wm. Stevenson

Authors
  1. Knut J. Norstog
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  2. Ernest M. Gifford
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  3. Dennis Wm. Stevenson
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Norstog, K.J., Gifford, E.M. & Stevenson, D.W. Comparative development of the spermatozoids of cycads andGinkgo biloba . Bot. Rev 70, 5–15 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1663/0006-8101(2004)070[0005:CDOTSO]2.0.CO;2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1663/0006-8101(2004)070[0005:CDOTSO]2.0.CO;2

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