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In botany
Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...
, a caryopsis (plural caryopses) is a type of simple fruit
In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering.
Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...
—one that is monocarpellate (formed from a single carpel
Gynoecium (; ) is most commonly used as a collective term for the parts of a flower that produce ovules and ultimately develop into the fruit and seeds. The gynoecium is the innermost whorl of a flower; it consists of (one or more) '' pistils' ...
) and indehiscent
Dehiscence is the splitting of a mature plant structure along a built-in line of weakness to release its contents. This is common among fruits, anthers and sporangia. Sometimes this involves the complete detachment of a part; structures that op ...
(not opening at maturity) and resembles an achene, except that in a caryopsis the pericarp
Fruit anatomy is the plant anatomy of the internal structure of fruit. Fruits are the mature ovary or ovaries of one or more flowers. They are found in three main anatomical categories: aggregate fruits, multiple fruits, and simple fruits. Aggr ...
is fused with the thin seed coat
A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiosperm p ...
.
The caryopsis is popularly called a grain and is the fruit typical of the family Poaceae (or Gramineae), which includes wheat
Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeologi ...
, rice
Rice is the seed of the grass species '' Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and '' Porteresia'', both wild and domesticat ...
, and corn.
The term ''grain'' is also used in a more general sense as synonymous with cereal (as in "cereal grains", which include some non-Poaceae). Considering that the fruit wall and the seed are intimately fused into a single unit, and the caryopsis or grain is a dry fruit, little concern is given to technically separating the terms ''fruit'' and ''seed'' in these plant structures. In many grains, the " hulls" to be separated before processing are flower bracts.
Etymology
The name "caryopsis" is derived from the Greek words ''karyon'' and ''-opsis'', meaning "nut" and "having the appearance of", respectively. The term was first used by Achille Richard to refer to the dry, monospermic, indehiscent fruit commonly found in grasses. This definition of fruit for the Gramineae family has persisted to the modern day, but some botanists have challenged the idea that the dry caryopsis is a defining characteristic of the family. The other forms of fruit proposed to be borne by grasses include achenes, utricles,berries
A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit, although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples are strawberries, rasp ...
, and nut
Nut often refers to:
* Nut (fruit), fruit composed of a hard shell and a seed, or a collective noun for dry and edible fruits or seeds
* Nut (hardware), fastener used with a bolt
Nut or Nuts may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Co ...
s. However, others have suggested that these differing fruit structures are representative of caryopsis diversity rather than of entirely different structures. This diverse form of the caryopsis would include the follicle-like form of '' Crypsis'' and ''Eleusine
''Eleusine'' is a genus of Asian, African, and South American plants in the grass family,Dinochloa
''Dinochloa'' is a genus of tropical clumping high-climbing bamboos in the grass family.
These species bear zigzag culms and fleshy fruits. They are found in the hill forests and lowland dipterocarp forest of southern China, Southeast Asia, a ...
'' and ''Olmeca
''Olmeca'' is a genus of Mesoamerican bamboo in the grass family.
''Olmeca'' is the only known New World bamboo having large fleshy fruits. It also has rhizomes with long necks and very open clumps.
The genus is named for the Olmec peoples o ...
'' where the pericarp is more thick and fleshy, and the nut-like form found in ''Dendrocalamus
''Dendrocalamus'' is a tropical Asian genus of giant clumping bamboos in the grass family. It is found in the Indian subcontinent, China, and Southeast Asia.
'' Dendrocalamus giganteus'' is one of the tallest of bamboos, capable of reaching heig ...
'' and '' Schizostachyum''. By this definition, the caryopsis is truly the only fruit type found in the Gramineae. The types of caryopsis are often distinguished by the terms "modified caryopsis", referring to caryopses with a pericarp not wholly adnate to the seed coat, and "true caryopsis", referring to those with a pericarp totally adherent to the seed coat.
References
{{Authority control Fruit morphology