SEM x2400 - crown of thorns pollen
A scanning electron micrograph of Crown of Thorns pollen, magnified x2400. Euphorbia milii, the Crown of Thorns, is of the family Euphorbiaceae. The genus Euphorbia is one of the six largest genera of flowering plants, containing 1500-2000 species. One shared characteristic of the genus is a milky, latex-like sap, which has irritant properties. It is not a severe risk to humans or animals. The other characteristic is the cyathium. It looks like a single flower, but is actually an inflorescence composed of one pedicelled pistillate flower surrounded by numerous staminate flowers. They are all enclosed in a cup-shaped involucre. All of the flowers lack sepals and petals, and the staminate flowers have single stamens. Euphorbia flourish in a variety of habitats and soil conditions in all vegetation types. A pollen grain is a microscopic plant that carries the male genome, which is one-half the genetic complement of the parent plant. The pollen grain produces the sperm that fertilizes the ovum, or female genetic complement, of the plant. The fertilized ovum develops into a seed. The word pollen is derived from the Latin word meaning fine flour or dust. The pollen of the Euphorbia milii shows long furrows called colpae.
Size: 3200px × 2976px
Photo credit: © Mediscan / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: 030334, allergen, allergy, asthma, biology, colpae, crown, electron, euphorbia, euphorbiaceae, flowering, furrows, genome, grain, male, microbiology, micrograph, microscopic, microscopy, milii, plant, pollen, scanning, science, scientific, sem, thorns
