第五章 细胞全能性及其应用.pptVIP

第五章 内容简介 什么是细胞全能性？ 什么叫人工种子？ 人工种子具有哪些特点？ Plant Seeds A plant seed consists of an embryo and its food store (endosperm), surrounded by a seed coat (testa). The seed ensures that the next generation of plants exists. The embryo The embryo is made up of one or two cotyledons attached to a central axis. The upper part of the axis contains a plumule at its tip. The plumule grows into the shoot system. The lower part of the axis consists of the hypocotyl and a radicle. The radicle grows into the root system. The endosperm The endosperm is the food reserve that the embryo uses during the early stages of germination. Before the embryo is able to produce its own food through photosynthesis, the endosperm provides vital nutrients to the embryo. The testa The testa protects the embryo from injury and drying out. It also makes sure that the embryo remains viable before germination. As germination occurs, water is absorbed and the seed coat breaks allowing the radicle to first emerge from the seed. In the production of artificial seeds, an artificial endosperm can be created within the encapsulation matrix. The encapsulation matrix is a hydrogel made of natural extracts from seaweed (agar, carageenan or alginate), plants (arabic or tragacanth), seed gums (guar, locust bean gum or tamarind) or microrganisms (dextran, gellan or xanthan gum黄原胶.). These compounds will gel when mixed with or dropped into an appropriate electrolyte (copper sulphate, calcium chloride or ammonium chloride). Ionic bonds are formed to produce stable complexes. Useful adjuvants such as nutrients, plant growth regulators, pesticide and fungicide can be supplied to the plant propagule within the encapsulation matrix. In most cases, a second coat covering the artificial endosperm is required to simulate the seed coat.. Advantages of artificial seeds Artificial seeds have the potential for providing an inexpensive plant delivery system. The process of planting can be easily mechanised and this allows the dire