Locule

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A bi-locular tomato fruit.
A multi-locular tomato fruit.

A locule (pl. locules or loculi; from Latin loculus, meaning "little place") is a small cavity or compartment within an organ or part of an organism (animal, plant or fungus).

In Angiosperms (flowering plants), the term locule usually refers to a chamber within an ovary (gynoecium or carpel) of the flower and fruits. Depending on the number of locules in the ovary, fruits can be classified as uni-locular (unilocular), bi-locular, tri-locular or multi-locular. The number of locules present in a gynoecium may be equal to or less than the number of carpels. The locules contain the ovules or seeds.

The term may also refer to chambers within anthers containing pollen.[1]

In the Loculoascomycetes, a group of sac fungi, locules are chambers similar to perithecia, but hollowed out from the host tissue rather than being a preformed structure. For this reason, a single locule is referred to as a pseudothecium. Locules do, however, still contain asci,which hold ascospores, as perithecia do.

References

  1. Hickey, M.; King, C. (2001). The Cambridge Illustrated Glossary of Botanical Terms. Cambridge University Press. 
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