


Spō′rophyl, the leaf bearing the spores or spore receptacles Spō′rophyte, the spore-bearing stage in the life-cycle of a plant.- adj. Sporol′ogist, a botanist who emphasises the spores in classification Spō′rophore, the part of the thallus which bears spores: the placenta in flowering plants: a sporophyte.- adjs. Sporogō′nium, the sporocarp, capsule or so-called 'moss-fruit' in mosses.- adj. Spō′roderm, the wall or covering of a spore Sporogen′esis, reproduction by means of spores-also Sporog′eny.- adj. Spō′rocarp, a many-celled form of fruit produced in certain lower cryptogams in consequence of a sexual act Spō′rocyst, the cyst or capsule developed in the process of sporular encystment.- adj.

Sporan′gia), a spore-case, the sac in which the spores are produced endogenously-also Spore′-case Spō′ridesm ( bot.), a pluricellular body which becomes free like a simple spore, and in which every cell is capable of germinating Sporidī′olum, a secondary sporidium Sporid′ium, a secondary spore borne on a promycelium: an ascospore Sporificā′tion, spore-production Sporipar′ity, reproduction by means of spores.- adj. Sporangī′olum, a small sporangium Sporan′giophōre, the receptacle which bears the sporangia Sporan′giospōre, one of the peculiar spores of the Myxomycetes Sporan′gium ( pl. Sporan′gial Sporangif′erous Sporan′giform Sporan′gioid, like a sporangium.- ns. the reproductive body in flowerless plants like the fern, analogous to the seeds of ordinary flowering plants, but containing no embryo: a germ, a seed, a source of being generally.- adjs. The spores of seed plants, however, are produced internally and the megaspores, formed within the ovules and the microspores are involved in the formation of more complex structures that form the dispersal units, the seeds and pollen grains.Ĭhambers 20th Century Dictionary (0.00 / 0 votes) Rate this definition:

This cycle is known as alternation of generations. Two gametes fuse to form a zygote which develops into a new sporophyte. Under favourable conditions the spore can develop into a new organism using mitotic division, producing a multicellular gametophyte, which eventually goes on to produce gametes. Spores are usually haploid and unicellular and are produced by meiosis in the sporangium of a diploid sporophyte. In bacteria, spores are not part of a sexual cycle but are resistant structures used for survival under unfavourable conditions. Spores form part of the life cycles of many plants, algae, fungi and protozoa. By contrast, gametes are units of sexual reproduction. In biology, a spore is a unit of asexual reproduction that may be adapted for dispersal and for survival, often for extended periods of time, in unfavorable conditions. Freebase (0.00 / 0 votes) Rate this definition:
