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

The five genes encoding proteins associated on the ER-located sporopollenin metabolon in Arabidopsis87 are highlighted in grey.

From Nature

Flowering plants produce pollen grains composed by a chemically very stable substance named Sporopollenin, therefore pollen grains usually are well preserved in soils and sediments.

From Scientific American