Biology · Glossary

What is Haplontic, diplontic, haplo-diplontic?

Definition 5.1 University Biology — Year 2 · Chapter 5 — Life Cycles and Reproduction of Land Plants

Every sexual life cycle contains one fertilisation, which doubles the chromosome number, and one meiosis, which halves it; the cycles differ in what happens between them. In a haplontic cycle the zygote is the only diploid cell and undergoes meiosis at once; the organism is haploid and its gametes are made by mitosis (Chlamydomonas, many algae and fungi). In a diplontic cycle meiosis makes gametes directly, the gametes are the only haploid cells, and the organism is diploid (animals, the brown alga Fucus). In a haplo-diplontic cycle meiosis makes spores, which grow by mitosis into a haploid organism, the gametophyte, that makes gametes by mitosis; the zygote grows by mitosis into a diploid organism, the sporophyte, that makes spores by meiosis. Two multicellular bodies alternate — the alternation of generations — and this is the cycle of every land plant and of many algae.

Three life cycles. Blue: the haploid phase; red: the diploid phase; the thick arcs are the multicellular bodies. Every cycle passes once through meiosis and once through fertilisation; they differ in which phase — or both — grows into an organism.
Three life cycles. Blue: the haploid phase; red: the diploid phase; the thick arcs are the multicellular bodies. Every cycle passes once through meiosis and once through fertilisation; they differ in which phase — or both — grows into an organism.

Examples

Example 5.11 (The groups compared)

mossesfernsconifers
dominant generationgametophytesporophytesporophyte
gametophyteleafy shoot, cmprothallus, mm, freepollen grain (4 cells); ovule contents (thousands of cells)
sporesone kindone kindmicrospores, megaspores
fertilisationsperm swim in watersperm swim in waterpollen tube
dispersal unitsporesporeseed
vascular tissuenonexylem, phloemxylem, phloem, wood
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