Fertilisation and Cell Cycle in Angiosperms

Fertilisation is the result of successful fusion of female and male gametes, forming a zygote that develops into the embryo. From the perspective of cell cycle control, fertilisation is a hat‐trick. Firstly, the generation of gametes depends on the generation of haploid spores by meiosis and a sequence of mitotic divisions. Mitosis is required to produce the cells of the gametophyte, closely associated with differential fate acquisition. Secondly, cell cycle progression in both male and female gametes has to be synchronised in order to avoid chromosomal imbalance at karyogamy, and last but not least, the cell cycle should only be relaunched after a successful fusion. Here, we seek to survey our current knowledge of these processes from a cell cycle perspective and explore possible mechanisms involved in cell cycle control and coordination.