It always consists of a microtubule axoneme, surrounded by a membrane that extends from a modified centriole, called basal body. In some species, centrioles are also part of the centrosomes, which nucleate microtubules and participate in cell division.

While plant vegetative cells are devoid of centrioles, early land plants (such as bryophytes) form motile sperm cells during spermatogenesis. In this case, centrioles form de novo, providing an excellent system to investigate cilia evolution and de novo centriole assembly.

Focussing on the sperm cells’ centrioles of the model bryophyte Physcomitrella patens, we aim to describe spermatogenesis and de novo centriole formation at an ultrastructural level.

In parallel we are studying the regulation of motility and chemotaxis in mature sperm cells in this extant moss. While in animals sperm motility has been largely studied, in plants the mechanisms and molecular entities are still unknown.

We are using a transcriptome-guided approach to identify candidate genes with potential functions in sperm motility and chemotaxis signalling pathways.