ELATER

Elater

An elater is a cell that is hygroscopic, and therefore will change shape in response to changes in moisture in the environment. Elaters come in a variety of forms, but are always associated with plant spores. In plants that do not have seeds, they function in dispersing the spores to a new location.

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elater

Noun

  1. That which elates.

Noun (etymology 2)

  1. Elasticity; especially the expansibility of a gas.
  2. A long, slender cell produced among spores and having hygroscopic secondary cell wall thickenings.
  3. Any of the long, slender hygroscopic appendages attached to the spores of horsetails (genus Equisetum).
  4. An elaterid, or click beetle.


The above text is a snippet from Wiktionary: elater
and as such is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

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