CLASS XII/BIOLOGY/UNIT VI/1

UNIT- REPRODUCTION
CHAPTER - SEXUAL REPRODUCTION IN FLOWERING PLANTS

Things to remember:

• Flowers : The fascinating organs of Angiosperm:

1) Flowers are the site of sexual reproduction in flowering plants.
2) Flowers bear the reproductive organs, where gametes are produced.
3) Parts of a typical angiosperm flower are: sepals, petals, stamens and pistils.
4) The four whorls of a flower are - Calyx, Corolla, Androecium and Gynoecium.
5) The four whorls of the flower are attached on a central axis called thalamus.
6) Androecium is the male reproductive whorl; it consists of stamen.
7) Gynoecium is the female reproductive whorl; it consists of carpel.
8) A flower can be bisexual (contains both male and female reproductive parts)
or unisexual (only either of the reproductive parts are present).

PRE-FERTILISATION: STRUCTURES AND EVENTS

• Male reproductive structures: --
1) Stamen is the male reproductive unit of an angiospermous flower.
2) A typical Stamen consists of – a terminal bilobed structure called anther and a
long and slender stalk called filament.
3) The anther is usually bilobed with each lobe having two thecae in each lobe
(dithecous). A longitudinal groove separates the thecae.
CLASS XII/BIOLOGY/UNIT VI/1

4) In a cross section, the anther is tetragonal (four sided) structure, consisting of four
microsporangia, two in each lobes. Later microsporangia develops into pollen
sacs.
5) Microsporangia is circular in shape and has four wall layers: Epidermis,
Endothecium, Middle layers and Tapetum.
6) The outer three walls give protection and dehiscence of anther.
7) The Tapetum nourishes the developing pollen grain.
8) When the anther is young, the microsporangium contains compactly arranged
homogenous cells forming the sporogenous tissue.
CLASS XII/BIOLOGY/UNIT VI/1

• Microsporogenesis
1) As each cell of the sporogenous tissue is capable of giving rise to a pollen mother
cell (PMC).
2) The process of formation of microspores from a pollen mother cell through meiosis
is called microsporogenesis.
3) Each microspore mother cell undergoes meiosis to form a cluster of four haploid
cells, called microspore tetrad.
4) Each Microspore dissociate from each other and develop into pollen grains.

• Pollen Grain
1) Each pollen grain has a prominent two layered wall - the outer exine and the inner
intine.
2) Exine is made up of Sporopollenin which is a compound resistant to biological
decomposition.
3) The pollen grain is the first cell of a male gametophyte.
4) The size of the nucleus increases and it divides mitotically to produce a bigger
vegetative cell with tube nucleus and a smaller generative cell with generative
nucleus.

• Female Reproductive Organ (Pistil):-

1) A pistil consists of stigma, a stalk like style and a basal swollen ovule bearing part
called ovary.
2) Inside the ovary is ovarian cavity and parenchymatous cushion called placenta to
which are attached the ovules.
3) Each ovule is attached to the placenta by a slender stalk called funicle and the point
of attachment of the body of ovule with funicle called hilum.
CLASS XII/BIOLOGY/UNIT VI/1

4) Each ovule has one or two protective envelops called integuments, having an
opening called micropyle and its opposite end is called chalaza, which is enclosed
by mass of cells called nucellus in which embryo sac is located.

• Megasporogenesis
1) The process of formation of megaspores from the megaspore mother cells is called
megasporogenesis.
2) A single megaspore mother cell (MMC) differentiates to form four haploid
megaspores, upper three degenerates in a linear tetrad, lowermost enlarges to
become functional megaspore, which divides thrice to become antipodals two
nucleated endosperm cells and egg apparatus constiuting synergids and egg cell. A
typical embryo sac contains 8 nuclei, but 7 cells---3 micropylar, 3 chalazal and one
central.
CLASS XII/BIOLOGY/UNIT VI/1

POLLINATION: --It is the mechanism of transfer of pollen grains from anther to the
stigma of same or genetically different flowers of the same species.
• Types

• Autogamy: Contrivances—Cleistogamy and Chasmogamy.eg—Viola, Oxalis and

Commonolina.
• Agents of Pollination:

• Pollen pistil interaction

1) The stigma/pistil has the ability
to recognize the compatible pollen
of the same species, it is the result
of interaction between the chemical
components of the pollen and those
of stigma.

2) The events from the deposition of

pollen on the stigma till the pollen tube
enters the ovule are collectively referred
to as pollen-pistil interaction.
CLASS XII/BIOLOGY/UNIT VI/1

DOUBLE FERTILIZATION
1) After entering one of the synergids, the pollen tube releases the two male gametes in
the cytoplasm of the synergid. One male gamete fuses with the egg cell (syngamy) to
form zygote and the other male gamete fuses with the two polar nuclei (triple fusion)
to produce a triploid Primary Endosperm Nucleus (PEN).
2) Two fusion of gametes, syngamy and triple fusion, occur in each embryo sac. Double
fertilization ensures that the endosperm (the nutritive tissue) develops only after
successful formation of Zygote. Endosperm tissue provides nutrition to the
developing Embryo.

POST-FERTILISATION: EVENT AND STRUCTURES

All those events which occur in a flower after fertilization are collectively called post
fertilization events. It includes –
a) Developent of endosperm
b) Development of embryo
c) Maturation of ovule to seed
d) Maturation of ovary to fruit.

• Embryo: --It develops at the micropylar end of the embryo sac where the zygote divide
only after certain amount of endosperm is formed. A typical dicotyledonous embryo
consists of an embryonal axis and two cotyledons. The part of embryonal axis above the
level of cotyledons is called epicotyl. It terminates with the stem tip, called plumule. The
part below the level of cotyledons is called hypocotyl which terminates in the root tip
called radicle. In monocots, single cotyledon is called scutellum. Eg. grass family.

• Formation of seed and fruit: Seed is a fertilized ovule, found inside the fruit, consists
of seed coat, cotyledons and an embryonal axis. Fruits develops from ovary of a flower
(true fruit) can be termed as false when entire thalamus contributes in the formation of
fruits.
CLASS XII/BIOLOGY/UNIT VI/1

• Parthenocarpy: -When the fruits develop without fertilization, they are called seedless
fruits. Eg : Banana. By application of growth hormones, seedless fruits can be developed
artificially.

• Apomixis: The phenomenon of formation of seeds without fertilization.

Eg. Asteraceae and grasses.

• Polyembryony: -The phenomenon of having more than one embryo in a seed is called
Polyembryony. Eg; Citrus, onion, groundnut.
Polyembryony may occur due to fertilization of more than one egg or other cells like
synergids or cells from nucellus may develop into embryos.
CLASS XII/BIOLOGY/UNIT VI/1