sporopollenin

American  

[spawr-uh-pol-uh-nin] / ˌspɔr əˈpɒl ə nɪn /

noun

1. an inert, tough polymer forming the resistant outer coat of a pollen grain or spore.

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sporopollenin Scientific  

/ spôr′ə-pŏl′ə-nĭn /

1. An organic polymer that is extremely resistant to degradation. Pollen grains and many kinds of spores have a protective outer coating of sporopollenin, which is so durable that microfossils of sporopollenin are found in rocks over 500 million years old.

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Etymology

Origin of sporopollenin

First recorded in 1930–35; sporo- ( def. ) + pollen ( def. ) + -in ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

They produce the compounds lignin and sporopollenin, and form plasmodesmata that connect the cytoplasm of adjacent cells.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

The spores of seedless plants are surrounded by thick cell walls containing a tough polymer known as sporopollenin.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

Some spores protected by sporopollenin have survived and are attributed to early bryophytes.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

The spores of seedless plants and the pollen of seed plants are surrounded by thick cell walls containing a tough polymer known as sporopollenin.

From Textbooks • Apr. 25, 2013

Sporopollenin was once thought to be an innovation of land plants; however, the green algae Coleochaetes is now known to form spores that contain sporopollenin.

From Textbooks • Apr. 25, 2013