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Question
What does alternation of generation really mean? Could you please explain it in simpler words?
What does alternation of generation really mean? Could you please explain it in simpler words?
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Solution
A pattern of reproduction occurring in the life cycles of many lower plants and some invertebrates, involving a regular alternation between two distinct forms. The generations are alternately sexual and asexual (as in ferns) or dioecious and parthenogenetic (as in some jellyfishes).
The alternation of generations is an important concept in the evolution of plants. All land plants have alternation of generations. In mosses and their relatives (Bryophytes), the haploid gametophyte is the dominant generation, and the diploid sporophytes are sporangium-bearing stalks growing from the gametophytes.
The multicellular haploid plant structure is called the gametophyte, which is formed from the spore and give rise to the haploid gametes. The fluctuation between these diploid and haploid stages that occurs in plants is called the alternation of generations.
And, just like the sex cells of animals, the sperm and eggs of plants carry half of the hereditary material in the parent's genome. Beyond this, however, plant life cycles are unique in that they exhibit a process found in no other group of organisms —alternation of generations.
The alternation of generations is an important concept in the evolution of plants. All land plants have alternation of generations. In mosses and their relatives (Bryophytes), the haploid gametophyte is the dominant generation, and the diploid sporophytes are sporangium-bearing stalks growing from the gametophytes.
The multicellular haploid plant structure is called the gametophyte, which is formed from the spore and give rise to the haploid gametes. The fluctuation between these diploid and haploid stages that occurs in plants is called the alternation of generations.
And, just like the sex cells of animals, the sperm and eggs of plants carry half of the hereditary material in the parent's genome. Beyond this, however, plant life cycles are unique in that they exhibit a process found in no other group of organisms —alternation of generations.
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