Question

How are pollen banks useful?

Answer 1

Hint: Pollen is a powdery material that creates sperm cells ( male gametes ) composed of pollen grains that are male micro gametophytes of plants.

Complete Answer:
- Pollen banks are utilised to store pollen in suitable environments for a very long time period. Pollens are covered by liquid nitrogen named cryopreservation in the pollen bank.
- Pollen in plants is used in cross pollination for the movement of haploid male genetic information from the anther of one single flower to the stigma of another.
- Pollen of various plant varieties can be preserved at the temperature of liquid nitrogen, and can be used to inject into the hybrid varieties the desired character.
- Preservation of biodiversity in the type of preservation of the importance of genetic resources is a very significant application of the pollen bank. It is very important to create 'Pollen Banks' in which the pollen of the desired species can be stored for the breeding programme as a genetic resource.

The following are the important applications of pollen banks for farmers:
1) The restoration of natural biodiversity by maintaining important genetic resources.
2) This pollen could be used in various breeding programmes for seed hybridization, metabolic and physicochemical experiments like the study of allergens, etc.

Note: Pollen grains have a rough coat of sporopollenin that shields the gametophytes from stamens to the pistils of flowering plants and from the male cone to female coniferous plants during their motion.