Eukaryote of the Day: Popcorn Acacia and Plant Life Cycles

A collection of vocabulary flashcards based on key concepts from the lecture about popcorn acacia, plant life cycles, and the alternation of generations in plants.

Popcorn acacia (Cassia didymobotrya)

A species native to dry regions of Africa, belonging to the Fabaceae family.

Alternation of generations

The life cycle pattern in plants involving alternating between haploid gametophyte and diploid sporophyte stages.

Sporophyte

The diploid phase of the plant life cycle that produces spores through meiosis.

Gametophyte

The haploid phase of the plant life cycle that produces gametes.

Meiosis

A type of cell division that reduces the chromosome number by half, resulting in gametes.

Mitosis

A type of cell division that results in two identical daughter cells, maintaining the same chromosome number.

Seeds

Structures that contain an embryo and a food supply, capable of developing into a new plant.

Spores

Reproductive cells that can develop into a new organism without fusion with another cell, typically in non-seed plants.

Haploid

A cell or organism that has only one set of chromosomes.

Diploid

A cell or organism that has two sets of chromosomes.

Endosperm

Nutrient-rich tissue that provides food for the developing embryo in seeds.

Inhibition

The process by which seeds absorb water, leading to germination.

Double coconut palm (Lodoicea maldivica)

The species known for producing the world's largest seeds, weighing 15-30 kg.

Tropical orchids

The species with the smallest seeds, weighing just 10 billionths of an ounce.

Dormancy

A period in which seeds are inactive and do not germinate even under favorable conditions.

Photosynthesis

The process by which green plants use sunlight to synthesize foods with the help of chlorophyll.

Allele

A variant form of a gene that can result in different traits.

Mutation

A change in the DNA sequence that can lead to various effects, including harmful traits.