Study On Embryology Of Chelidonium Majius L.

Celandine (Chelidonium majius L.) is the plant of poppy family, a kind of traditional Chinese medicine in our country, with various effects of eliminating inflammation and easing pain, of relieving cough, diuresis, anti-cancer and bacteriostasis, of preventing asthma and relieving internal heat or fever. In recent years, progresses have been made in research direction of pharmacological activities and artificial breeding, but research about embryology has not been found yet. This paper, using conventional paraffin section, made study of megasporegenesis, male and female gametogenesis, fertilization and embryo and endosperm under optical microscope, and the main results are as follows:(1) Anther of Chelidonium majius L. is made up of four anther cells. The development of the anther wall belongs to a dicotyledonous type, from external to internal successively:1 epidermis layer,1 endotheca endotheciume layer,1 middle lamella layer,1 tapetum layer. Tapetum belongs to glandular tapetum, polynuclear, and the dissolution is made in situ during the meiosis of microspore mother cell, and mature pollen wall only has fiber layer and residual epidermis.(2) The microspore of Chelidonium majius L. comes from meiosis of microspore mother cell. Cytokinesis is of the simultaneous type. The microspores are arranged in a tetrahedral tetrad. The mature pollen belongs to two cells and the 3-aperturate pollen on surface of mature pollen grain joins at the two poles.(3) Two carpels constitute the ovary of Celandine with a single locule, parietal placenta, anatropous ovule, double integument, and thick nucellus. Ovule’s development is later than anther, and sporogenous cells of microspore have been formed when ovule germinates. Megaspore mother cell is differentiated from sporogenous cell of megaspore, forming four linearly sequenced megaspores by meiosis, and one in chalaza has been reserved and has become functional megaspore.(4) Embryo sac of Chelidonium majius L. is of single-spore Polygonum type, and micropylar egg apparatus is comprised of one egg cell and two synergids, three antipodal cells at chalaza end, and central part of embryo sac is two central cells with polar nuclei. Pollen tube approaches the embryo sac through the micropyle, the fertilization of egg and sperm cells forms zygote, which will experience a long period of dormancy. The fertilization of the central cell and sperm cell forms endosperm, then into the split phase.(5) The embryogenesis of Chelidonium majius L. conformed to the So-lanad type, experiencing the embryonic stage, early globular embryo, globular embryo, heart-shaped embryo and torpedo embryo successively, and fully differentiated embryo is not seen in the matured seeds, with the delayed differentiation phenomenon. The embryonal development is nuclear type. Dormant zygote can be activated when there are hundreds of free nuclei.Through the study in this article, it has made up the blank of research on Chelidonium majius L. embryo, which has provided the theoretical basis for breeding and cultivation of Chelidonium majius L., making the full utilization of resources of Chelidonium majius L. Possible...