During sexual reproduction two gametes of opposite sex unite to produce a zygote. Gamete fusion is a highly controlled process and it has become evident that, across species, common concepts apply to this ancient and fundamental event. Sexual reproduction in flowering plants is even more complex in that two sperm cells fertilize two female reproductive cells (egg and central cell) in a process called double fertilization. Due to the coordinated developmental progression and mutual dependency of the two fertilization products (embryo and endosperm), the success and timing of the two fusion events substantially affects seed set. So far, four proteins are known to act on the surfaces of Arabidopsis gametes to accomplish double fertilization. The molecular and evolutionary characteristics of these players prove that flowering plants integrate plant-specific and widely conserved mechanisms to accomplish the timely fusion of each sperm cell with one female reproductive cell.

中文翻译：

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乐趣加倍，麻烦加倍：开花植物中的配子相互作用。

在有性生殖期间，异性的两个配子会结合在一起产生合子。配子融合是一个高度受控的过程，而且很明显，在整个物种中，共同的概念适用于这一古老而基础的事件。开花植物中的有性生殖更为复杂，因为两个精子细胞通过称为双重受精的过程使两个雌性生殖细胞（卵和中央细胞）受精。由于两种受精产品（胚和胚乳）的协调发育进程和相互依存关系，两种融合事件的成功与时机极大地影响了种子结实。迄今为止，已知有四种蛋白质作用于拟南芥配子的表面以完成双重受精。