How many meiosis are required to produce 50 seeds of tobacco?
(a) 62
(b) 100
(c) 63
(d) 50

Options

A. 62
B. 100
C. 63
D. 50

Answer

To determine how many meiosis events are required to produce 50 seeds of tobacco, we can break down the process step by step:

### Step-by-Step Solution:

1. **Understanding Seed Formation**:
- Seeds are formed from ovules, which develop after fertilization of the egg cell (female gamete) by the male gamete (pollen).

2. **Meiosis in Female Gametes**:
- The egg cells are produced from megaspore mother cells (diploid). Each megaspore mother cell undergoes meiosis to produce one functional egg cell (haploid) and three degenerate cells.
- Therefore, to produce one egg cell (which contributes to one seed), one meiosis is required.

3. **Calculating Meiosis for Female Gametes**:
- For 50 seeds, we need 50 egg cells, which means we need 50 meiosis events from 50 megaspore mother cells.

4. **Meiosis in Male Gametes**:
- Male gametes (pollen grains) are produced from microspore mother cells (also diploid). Each microspore mother cell undergoes meiosis to produce four microspores (haploid), all of which can develop into pollen grains.
- Thus, one microspore mother cell can produce four pollen grains through one meiosis event.

5. **Calculating Meiosis for Male Gametes**:
- To produce enough pollen grains for fertilization, we need to calculate how many microspore mother cells are required. Since each microspore mother cell produces 4 pollen grains, to produce enough pollen grains for 50 seeds, we need at least 13 microspore mother cells (since 13 x 4 = 52, which is sufficient for 50 seeds).
- Therefore, we need 13 meiosis events from 13 microspore mother cells.

6. **Total Meiosis Calculation**:
- Now, we add the meiosis required for both female and male gametes:
- Meiosis for female gametes: 50
- Meiosis for male gametes: 13
- Total meiosis required = 50 (from female) + 13 (from male) = 63.

7. **Conclusion**:
- The total number of meiosis events required to produce 50 seeds of tobacco is **63**.

### Final Answer:
(c) 63