The meiotic behaviour of a haploid pearl millet

Meiosis was studied in one haploid plant of pearl millet, obtained from twin seedlings. Apparent pairing resulted in up to three bivalent associations at pachytene. At diakinesis and metaphase I associations of two, three or four chromosomes were observed. The frequency distribution of bivalents at metaphase followed a truncated Poisson distribution, suggesting that the bivalents were random pairs. They were considered to be pseudo-bivalents. Univalents varied in number from three to seven and they formed s-s and e-g associations. The s-s and e-s associations were random associations since their frequency distributions also followed a truncated Poisson distribution. A bipolar spindle was observed in a large number of PMC's but in a few cases two unipolar spindles were observed. The anaphase I distribution of the chromosomes deviated from abinomial distribution. Laggards were observed at telophase I. The dyads varied in size and in number of chromosomes. After the second division cell wall formation often failed to take place in one or in both the dyads, resulting in the formation of 2 to 4 microspores and microspores with two nuclei. The pollen grains varied in size and number of chromosomes. The plant was completely sterile.