Prothallus Sentence Examples

Ovules naked, rarely without carpellary leaves, usually borne on carpophylls, which assume various forms. The single megaspore enclosed in the nucellus is filled with tissue (prothallus) before fertilization, and contains two or more archegonia, consisting usually of a large egg-cell and a small neck, rarely of an egg-cell only and no neck (Gnetum and Welwitschia).

Similarly in the Araucarieae and in Widdringtonia the archegonia are numerous and scattered and often sunk in the prothallus tissue.

The ovule is not enclosed in an ovary, and the usually solitary macrospore becomes filled with a prothallus, in the upper part of which are formed several rudimentary archegonia.

Microspore spherical or oval, with or without a bladder-like extension of the exine, containing a prothallus of two or more cells, one of which produces two non-motile or motile male cells.

The megaspore-nucleus divides repeatedly, and cells are produced from the peripheral region inwards, which eventually fill the sporecavity with a homogeneous tissue (prothallus); some of the superficial cells at the micropylar end of the megaspore increase in size and divide by a tangential wall into two, an upper cell which gives rise to the short two-celled neck of the archegonium, and a lower cell which develops into a large egg-cell.

It has been shown by Lawson that in Sequoia sempervirens (Annals of Botany, 1904) and by other workers in the genera that several megaspores may attain a fairly large size in one prothallus.

The megaspore becomes filled with tissue (prothallus), and from some of the superficial cells archegonia are produced, usually three to five in number, but in rare cases ten to twenty or even sixty may be present.

In the genus Sequoia there may be as many as sixty archegonia (Arnoldi and Lawson) in one megaspore; these occur either separately or in some parts of the prothallus they may form groups as in the Cupressineae; they are scattered through the prothallus instead of being confined to the apical region as in the majority of conifers.

The genus Ephedra, with its prothallus and archegonia, which are similar to those of other Gymnosperms, may be safely regarded as the most primitive of the Gnetales.

The embryo of Gnetum forms an out-growth from the hypocotyl, which serves as a feeder and draws nourishment from the prothallus.

The point common to all Pteridophyta is that from the first the gametophyte is an independent organism, while the sporophyte, though in the first stages of its development it obtains nutriment from the prothallus, becomes physiologically independent when its root develops.

The early segmentation of the embryo differs in the several groups, but usually the first leaf or leaves, the apex of the stem and the first root are differentiated early, while a special absorbent organ (the foot) maintains for some time the physiological connexion between the sporophyte and the prothallus.

Further, several spores will be likely to germinate together owing to their elaters becoming entangled; a fact of some importance, since the antheridia and archegonia, though occurring sometimes on the same prothallus, are more often borne on separate individuals.

There is some reason to believe that the prothallus of Psilotum resmbles some Lycopodium prothalli, but conclusive evidence is wanting; that of Tmesipteris is unknown.

B, Prothallus bearing young sporophyte.

The spores, when liberated by the dehiscence of the sporangium, give rise to the prothallus, which is now, owing mainly to the investigations of Treub and Bruchmann, known in a number of tropical and temperate species.

In habit and mode of life of the prothallus these present striking differences, which may be correlated with the situations inhabited by the sporophyte, and are perhaps to be regarded as adaptations which have enabled the species to survive.

A comparison of these various types would appear to indicate that the primitive form of prothallus in the genus was radially symmetrical and contained chlorophyll.

The antheridia and archegonia are produced above the meristematic zone, and are more or less sunk in the tissues of the prothallus.

On germination the microspores give rise to a reduced prothallus, consisting of the small cell first cut off and a wall of cells enclosing two to four central ones; "from these latter the biciliate spermatozoids originate.

The megaspore becomes filled with the female prothallus, the formation of cell-walls commencing at the pointed end of the spore, where from the first the nuclei are more numerous, and later extending to the base.

Thus the position of the root in Selaginella is different from what obtains in the other Vascular Cryptogams. A point of interest in this heterosporous genus is that the formation of the prothallus may commence before the megaspore is liberated from the sporangium.

Those of Ophioglossum are cylindrical, while the dorsiventral prothallus of Botrychium bears the sexual organs on the upper surface.

The prothallus developed from the spore is green and in most cases dorsiventral, bearing the archegonia and antheridia on the under surface.

The dorsiventrality of the prothallus has been shown to depend mainly on the illumination, the filamentous form being retained in feeble light; a similar result is obtained when the prothalli are cultivated in water.

The reproduction of the prothallus by gemmae in species of Trichomanes, Vittaria and Monogramme is another interesting adaptation; the prothallus of Gymnogramme (From Strasburger's Lehrbuck der Bolanik.) FIG.

In some apogamous Ferns sporangia may occur on the prothallus and the vegetative organs of the sporophyte may also occur singly.

A, Prothallus viewed from the lower surface; ar, archegonia; an, antheridia; rh, rhizoids (much enlarged).

The spores produce a green prothallus of large size, the sexual organs of which hardly project from the surface.

The cotyledon and stem grow up vertically through the prothallus, the root turning downwards into the soil.

The prothallus and sexual organs may resemble those of the Polypodiaceae; in Aneimia and Mohria the prothallus, though flattened, is not bilaterally symmetrical, the growing point being on one side; a filamentous type of prothallus is known in Schizaea.

The structure of the prothallus and sexual organs will be evident from figs.

The microspores on germination produce a small, greatly reduced male prothallus bearing one or two antheridia which give rise to a number of spirally coiled, multiciliate spermatozoids.

This, though at first dependent on the prothallus, soon becomes independent.

Upper part of seed, in longitudinal section; i, integument; mi, micropyle; n, remains of nucellus; p.c, pollen-chamber (containing pollen-grains), with its canal extending up to the micropyle; pr, part of prothallus; ar, archegonia.

In the former the prothallus produces one or more fern-plants vegetatively, the projection which develops into the sporophyte in many cases occupying the position of an archegonium.

B, Prothallus bearing a young fern plant; b, first leaf; w, primary root.

The embryo consists of an axis bearing two or more cotyledons and ending below in a radicle; it lies in a generally copious food-storing tissue (endosperm) which is the remains of the female prothallus.

The reproductive organs ultimately produced on the same or on different individuals are of two kinds, the antheridia and archegonia; the origin of both is from single superficial cells of the prothallus.