Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 28, 2026

Live Imaging of Arabidopsis Pollen Tube Reception and Double Fertilization Using the Semi-In Vitro Cum Septum Method
Published on: February 24, 2023
A Fruitful Journey: Pollen Tube Navigation from Germination to Fertilization
Mark A Johnson1, Jeffrey F Harper2, Ravishankar Palanivelu3
1Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology, and Biochemistry, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island 02912, USA;
Abstract:
In flowering plants, pollen tubes undergo tip growth to deliver two nonmotile sperm to the ovule where they fuse with an egg and central cell to achieve double fertilization. This extended journey involves rapid growth and changes in gene activity that manage compatible interactions with at least seven different cell types. Nearly half of the genome is expressed in haploid pollen, which facilitates genetic analysis, even of essential genes. These unique attributes make pollen an ideal system with which to study plant cell-cell interactions, tip growth, cell migration, the modulation of cell wall integrity, and gene expression networks. We highlight the signaling systems required for pollen tube navigation and the potential roles of Ca2+ signals. The dynamics of pollen development make sexual reproduction highly sensitive to heat stress. Understanding this vulnerability may generate strategies to improve seed crop yields that are under threat from climate change.
Related Concept Videos
Fruit Development, Structure, and Function
The Angiosperm Life Cycle
Fertilization
In Vitro Fertilization
The IVF process begins with ovarian stimulation, during which reproductive endocrinologists prescribe hormonal medications to stimulate the ovaries to produce multiple eggs instead of the single...
Pollination and Flower Structure
Uterine Tubes

