Observations of in vitro gametangial copulation and oosporogenesis in Lagenidium giganteum

An in vitro liquid culture oospore production method yielding 5 × 10³ oospores/ml was used to follow the sequential events of gametangial copulation and oospore formation in Lagenidium giganteum. Observations were made with Nomarski differential interference microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. After septation and division of fungal thalli into a chain-like series of links, certain individual subthalli differentiated into gametaniga, oogonia, and antheridia. Antheridia issued a fertilization tube which made contact with, and fused to a single oogonium. Copulative behavior was relatively synchronous and necessitated physical contact between thalli. Sexual reproduction was manifested by the migration and condensation of gametes. Plasmogamy was achieved following the introduction of the male gamete into the oogonium. The fused gametes gave rise to a zygote. Small amounts of periplasm remained in the oogonium. Zygote maturation into a fully developed oospore was characterized by the deposition of a multilaminated oospore wall, the coalescence of lipids into a highly refractive central reserve globule surrounded by a layer of fine-grained cytoplasm.