What are Akinetes and what is their function?

An akinete is an enveloped, thick-walled, non-motile, dormant cell formed by filamentous, heterocyst-forming cyanobacteria under the order Nostocales and Stigonematales. They also accumulate and store various essential material, both of which allows the akinete to serve as a survival structure for up to many years.

What is meant by Akinetes?

Definition of akinete in certain algae. : a thick-walled single-celled nonmotile asexual resting spore formed by the thickening of the parent cell wall, corresponding to the chlamydospore of many fungi, and usually germinating directly into a new filament — see aplanospore.

Under what conditions are Akinetes formed?

Akinetes are formed under unfavorable conditions, such as nutrient starvation, low light, and low temperature. Akinetes are resting cells, which can survive under harsh environmental conditions.

What is difference between Akinetes and Heterocysts?

Akinetes (Greek “akinetos”) are motionless, spore-like resting cells that differentiate from vegetative cells and serve in perennation. Akinetes are larger (sometimes up to 10-fold) than vegetative cells, and heterocysts possess thickened cell wall and a multilayered extracellular envelope (Adams and Duggan, 1999).

Are Akinetes spores?

Akinetes are resting spore-like cells formed by some heterocyst-forming filamentous cyanobacteria for surviving long periods of unfavourable conditions.

Are Akinetes vegetative cells?

Akinetes differentiate from vegetative cells and provide a seed bank for rapid repopulation of the water column (Hori et al., 2003; Karlsson-Elfgren et al., 2004). These dormant cells survive harsh conditions in bottom sediments and dried-up shores of streams, pools and lakes.

Are akinetes spores?

What is the function of akinetes in spirogyra?

Akinete are the resting spores formed in some species of Spirogyra and helps in asexual reproduction, they are formed during unfavourable environmental condition. Akinete can grow into a new filament of Spirogyra, once environmental condition becomes normal.

Where are akinetes found?

cyanobacteria
Akinetes are dormancy cells commonly found among filamentous cyanobacteria, many of which are toxic and/or nuisance, bloom-forming species. Development of akinetes from vegetative cells is a process that involves morphological and biochemical modifications.

What are the functions of vegetative cells akinetes and heterocysts?

In response to environmental changes, Anabaena cylindrica differentiate three cell types: vegetative cells for photosynthesis, heterocysts for nitrogen fixation, and akinetes for stress survival.

What are Hormogonia write their importance?

Hormogonia are motile filaments of cells formed by some cyanobacteria in the order Nostocales and Stigonematales. Hormogonium differentiation is crucial for the development of nitrogen-fixing plant cyanobacteria symbioses, in particular that between cyanobacteria of the genus Nostoc and their hosts.

What is the function of Akinetes in Anabaena?

Akinetes are spore-like non-motile cells that differentiate from vegetative cells of filamentous cyanobacteria from the order Nostocales. They play a key role in the survival and distribution of these species and contribute to their perennial blooms.

What is the function of the akinete?

An akinete is an enveloped, thick-walled, non-motile, dormant cell formed by filamentous, heterocyst-forming cyanobacteria under the order Nostocales and Stigonematales. Akinetes are resistant to cold and desiccation. They also accumulate and store various essential material, both of which allows the akinete to serve as…

Are akinetes resistant to cold and heat?

Akinetes are resistant to cold and desiccation. They also accumulate and store various essential material, both of which allows the akinete to serve as a survival structure for up to many years. However, akinetes are not resistant to heat.

What is a akinete of Gloeotrichia?

Terminally located akinete of Gloeotrichia. An akinete is an enveloped, thick-walled, non-motile, dormant cell formed by filamentous, heterocyst-forming cyanobacteria under the order Nostocales and Stigonematales.

What is the relationship between akinetes and filaments?

In most species, mature akinetes are completely detached from the filament although there are cases where two or more mature akinetes remain connected to each other ( Perez et al., 2018 ). In N. punctiforme, mature akinetes usually remained embedded in an extracellular matrix, presumably composed of exopolysaccharides ( Perez et al., 2018 ).