Pollen tube Pollen tube A pollen tube is a tubular structure produced by the male gametophyte of seed plants when it germinates. It acts as a conduit to transport the male gamete cells from the pollen grain—either from the stigma (in flowering plants) to the ovules at the base of the pistil or directly through ovule tissue in some gymnosperms. In maize, this single cell can grow longer than to traverse the length of the pistil. Pollen tubes were first discovered by Giovanni Battista Amici. They are used as a model for understanding plant cell behavior. Research is ongoing to comprehend how
Annulus (botany) Annulus (botany) An annulus in botany is an arc or a ring of specialized cells on the sporangium. These cells are arranged in a single row, and are associated with the release or dispersal of spores. In leptosporangiate ferns, the annulus located on the outer rim of the sporangium and serves in spore dispersal. It consists typically of a ring or belt of dead water-filled cells with differentially thickened cell walls that stretches about two-thirds around each sporangium in leptosporangiate ferns. The thinner walls on the outside allow water to evaporate quickly under dry conditions. This dehiscence causes the cells