10/26/2020 Acetabularia -- Britannica Online Encyclopedia

Acetabularia
Acetabularia, also called mermaid’s wine glass, genus of single-celled green algae (family Polyphysaceae)
found in subtropical seas. The algae are among the largest single-celled organisms and also feature an
unusually large nucleus. Because part of one species can be grafted onto another, Acetabularia has been used
to study the relative role of nucleus and cytoplasm in the genetic control of growth and development.

Acetabularia species are umbrella-like in appearance and are

Acetabularia from Cholla Bay, Mex.
Robert W. Hoshaw/Encyclopædia
Britannica, Inc.
are released for sexual reproduction.
anchored to their substrate with rootlike rhizoids. At the top of
the tall, slender stalk, 0.5 to 10 cm (0.2 to 3.9 inches) long, is a
ring of branches that may be separate or fused to form a cap.
Some species also have rings of hairlike structures along the
stalk. Near the base of the stalk is a large nucleus that divides
many times when the alga matures and reproductive structures
form. Streaming cytoplasm carries the daughter nuclei to the
saclike sporangium of each umbrella lobe, where the gametes

This article was most recently revised and updated by Melissa Petruzzello, Assistant Editor.

Citation Information
Article Title: Acetabularia
Website Name: Encyclopaedia Britannica
Publisher: Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
Date Published: 14 March 2017
URL: https://www.britannica.com/science/Acetabularia
Access Date: October 26, 2020

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