Applied Plant Anatomy to Study In Vitro Androgenic Systems

Abstract

By means of anther culture or isolated gametophyte culture, it is possible to control the microgametophytic development and to trigger atypical cell divisions that could originate sporophytes. These new sporophytes have the same genetic constitution of the gametophyte, with different ploidy levels, characterizing the occurrence of androgenesis. In this direct gametophyte-sporophyte transition, histological studies contribute to understanding morphogenic events, which frequently occur by embryogenesis. Moreover, since anther walls and connective tissue could proliferate in vitro, cultured anthers must always undergo histological studies for a precise description of embryogenic sites. In this text, recent histological observations in both androgenic systems are presented and discus-sed. Observations confirm that compared with techniques, anatomical techniques enable highly reliable inferences.