Question

Endosperm is completely consumed by the developing embryo in
A) Pea, bean and groundnut
B) Maize, bean and castor
C) Maize, pea and groundnut
D) Maize, bean and pea

Answer 1

Hint: The tissue that is produced inside the seed is called endosperm. This tissue can be seen in most of the flowering plants. Endosperm provides nutrients needed for the embryo in the form of starch and it surrounds the embryo, also it is usually triploid in nature.

Complete answer:
During the formation of embryo, one of the sperms in the pollen grain enters the embryo sac fuses with the egg, while the two polar cells in the embryo sac get fused with each other, and the other sperm entering the pollen grain, fuses with those cells, results in the formation of triploid endosperm.

As each day proceeds, the size of the endosperm nuclei increases. Endosperm is completely absorbed by the embryo in some plants. Such seeds in which no endosperm left are called as non-endospermous seeds or exalbuminous seeds. .Some examples are: beans, pea, groundnut and green gram. In this type of plant food is stored in dicot seeds. But in some dicots like castor, maize etc, food is stored in endosperm. In coconut, endosperm is present in the form of liquid and it is stored.

Hence, the correct answer is option (A).

Note: The seeds, in which endosperm is persistent and is not completely consumed by the growing embryo, are called endospermous seeds or albuminous seeds. In most of the endospermous seeds, food is stored in the form of starch. But in some plants food is stored in the form of fat. And the endosperm is also able to produce hormones like cytokinins and also helps in cell differentiation.