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Understanding The Cellular And Physiological Mechanisms Of Fertilization And Early-Stage Seed Development, Mohammad Foteh Ali

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Flowering plants have evolved a unique double-fertilization process. Two sperm cells fuse with two female gametophytic cells, the egg and central cells within the ovule, giving rise to the embryo and endosperm, respectively. Sperm cells in flowering plants are nonmotile and delivered in close proximity to the egg and central cells by the pollen tube. Flowering plants have established filamentous actin (F-actin) based sperm nuclear migration system for successful fertilization. Prior to fertilization, the female gamete forms a mesh-like structure of F-actin that shows constant inward movement from the plasma membrane periphery to the center of the cell where the …