Fine structure study of pollen development in Haemanthus katherinae Baker. 3. Changes in organelles during development of the vegetative cell.

The newly formed generative cell of the pollen grain of the African blood lily is spheroidal after its detachment from the pollen wall. Plastids are almost always excluded from the generative cell, while dictyosomes, mitochondria, ribosomes, endoplasmic reticulum, and microtubules are present throughout development of the cell. During the time that the generative cell is spheroidal, microtubules are found scattered randomly throughout the cytoplasm. The cell subsequently elongates and concurrently an oriented system of microtubules appears along the wall of the cell. The microtubules are aligned with their long axes parallel to the long axis of the cell. This system of microtubules persists in the generative cell throughout its development. The microtubules can be destroyed by exposure to isopropyl iV-phenylcarbamate or colchicine and as a result the generative cell reverts to a near spheroidal shape.