What is the fate of the male gametes discharged in the synergid?
What is the fate of the male gametes discharged in the synergid?
One fuses with the egg, other(s) degenerate(s) in the synergid.
All fuse with the egg.
One fuses with the egg, other(s) fuse(s) with synergid nucleus.
One fuses with the egg and other fuses with central cell nuclei.
Solution
After a pollen grain germinates on the surface of the stigma, it forms a pollen tube that grows through the style and is guided through the micropyle (a minute opening at one end of the ovule). The pollen tube grows toward and into one of the synergid cells, which begins to degenerate as the pollen tube enters it (or shortly before). The pollen tube then ceases growth, ruptures, and releases its two sperm cells, which migrate to the egg and central cell, fertilization of which gives rise to the embryo and endosperm, respectively.