So, algae isn't a clade of organisms (the complete set of descendants of a common ancestor) it's a grade of organisms (a group of organisms united by common features), kind of like fish but more so. Finally, both charophytes and the land plants show apical growth—growth from the tips of the plant rather than throughout the plant body. Although it is now widely accepted that the Charophyceae are a sister group to the land plants, there is considerable disagreement over the systematics of different charophycean taxa and whether a Chara- or Coleochaete-like alga was … Charophytes range in morphology from unicellular to complex multicellular organisms and occur in freshwater or moist terrestrial habitats. These enzymes help the cell hold onto organic products that it doesn't want to lose, like its cell phone and wallet. The charophytes (Streptophyta,Virideplantae) are the extant group of green algae that are most closely related to modern land plants. Sporangium walls, which protect the plant zygotes inside sporangia from desiccation, contain this sporopollenin compound. Beneficial interaction with symbiotic fungi has been proposed as one of these innovations. one key difference b/w green algae and plants is that plants have walled spores produced in sporangia and that the walls of these spores produce sporopollenin. They form plasmodesmata, which are microscopic channels that connect the cytoplasm of adjacent cells. The charophyte algae are six distinct groups of mostly freshwater green algae that are related to modern land plants. That charophytes and land plants have a phragmoplast type of cell division, whereas chlorophytes, trebouxiophytes, and some members of the ulvophytes have a phycoplast type of cell division led to the division of the green algae and land plants into two distinct groups based on this cytokinetic character (Mattox and Stewart, 1984; Fig. That charophytes and land plants have a phragmoplast type of cell division, whereas chlorophytes, trebouxiophytes, and some members of the ulvophytes have a phycoplast type of cell division led to the division of the green algae and land plants into two distinct groups based on this cytokinetic character (Mattox and Stewart, 1984; Fig. The innovations that allowed the algal ancestor of land plants to succeed in such a transition remain unknown. Abstract. Finally, both charophytes and the land plants show apical growth—growth from the tips of the plant rather than throughout the plant body. Charophytes are the only algae that share certain characteristics with plants. In the chlorophytes, intercellular connections do not persist in mature multicellular forms. Author information: (1)Academy of Natural Sciences, 1900 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia, PA 19103, USA. Charophyta, a phylum of green algae, is the only protist that produces sporopollenin, a water-resistant polymer. 4). Scientists believe that plants evolved directly from a freshwater green algae called charophyte. Approximately 450-500 million years ago, an ancestral charophyte emerged onto land and ultimately gave rise to terrestrial plants, an event of profound significance in the natural history of the planet. my thoughts? Consequently, land plants and the charophytes are now part of a new monophyletic group called Streptophyta. Charophytes In common with other green algae and land plants, charophytes have grass green chloroplasts containing chlorophylls a and b , and store starch inside their chloroplasts. The egg and, later, the zygote, form in a protected chamber on the parent plant. Morphological, biochemical, and molecular data strongly suggest a common ancestry of land plants and Charophyceae sensu MATTOX & STEWART. 38, 40. In the chlorophytes, intercellular connections do not persist in mature multicellular forms. Morphological, biochemical, and molecular data strongly suggest a common ancestry of land plants and Charophyceae sensu MATTOX & STEWART. Andrea Bennici ... and in particular, the Charophyceans or Charophyta (Coleochaete, Chara, Nitella) ... the presence of group II introns in two different tRNA genes of land plants suggested that Chara/Nitella are the closest living relatives to land plants.