COTTON EMBRYOGENESIS - SPERM

The sperm of cotton were observed in the pollen tube in the style. They are true cells but relatively simple in organization. The nuclei are small and each contains a single, very small nucleolus. Nuclear pores are common and heterochromatin lines the nuclear membrane. The plastids and mitochondria are so reduced in internal structure that it is impossible to separately identify them. The suggestion is put forward that only mitochondria are present in the sperm. Dictyosomes are few but appear to be producing large numbers of vesicles. Single membrane vesicles of a large range of sizes are common. ER is scarce but polysomes are numerous. © 1968 Springer-Verlag.