Difference Between Protostele and Siphonostele

The key difference between protostele and siphonostele is that protostele is the most primitive type of stele that consists of a solid core of xylem without a central pith while siphonostele is a modification of protostele that consists of a cylindrical vascular system surrounding a central pith.

The stele is the central portion of a stem or a root that is composed of vascular tissues and other ground tissues. Stele has tissues derived from the procambium such as vascular tissue, pith, pericycle, etc. In simple words, stele is the central area endodermis surrounds. Protostele and siphonostele are two types of steles present in plants. Protostele is the most primitive type of stele present in lower plants while siphonostele is a much more advanced stele present in other plants.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Protostele
3. What is Siphonostele
4. Similarities Between Protostele and Siphonostele
5. Side by Side Comparison – Protostele vs Siphonostele in Tabular Form
6. Summary

What is Protostele?

Protostele is one of the two types of steles present in plants. Characteristically, it has a solid core of vascular tissue at the center. Hence, it lacks a central pith. Furthermore, it is a type of primitive stele present in primitive vascular plants.

Haplostele, actinostele, and plectostele are the three types of protosteles that can be seen in plants.

What is Siphonostele?

Siphonostele is the second type of stele present in plants that contains a central pith. Vascular tissue occurs in a cylindrical manner surrounding the central pith. Furthermore, this type of stele is present in flowering plants as well as in ferns.

Also, there are three types of siphonosteles as solenostele, dictyostele, and eustele.

What are the Similarities Between Protostele and Siphonostele?

• Protostele and siphonostele are two types of steles present in plants.
• Both contain the tissues derived from the procambium.
• Also, they consist of vascular tissues.
• Furthermore, they are present in stems as well as roots.

What is the Difference Between Protostele and Siphonostele?

Protostele has a solid core of vascular tissue at the center of the stele while siphonostele does not have a solid core of vascular tissue at the center. Therefore, this is a key difference between protostele and siphonostele. Furthermore, another significant difference between protostele and siphonostele is that the protostele does not contain a central pith while siphonostele has a central pith.

Moreover, protostele is present in primitive vascular plants while siphonostele is present in many ferns and flowering plants. Thus, this is a further difference between protostele and siphonostele. The below infographic presents more details on the difference between protostele and siphonostele.

Summary – Protostele vs Siphonostele

Protostele and siphonostele are two main types of steles seen in plant stems and roots. Protostele is the most primitive type of a stele while siphonostele is a modification of protostele. Moreover, protostele has a central solid core of vascular tissue. Hence, it does not contain a central pith. On the other hand, siphonostele has a central pith. Vascular tissue surrounds the central pith in a cylindrical manner. There are three types of protosteles and also three types of siphonosteles. Thus, this is a summary of the difference between protostele and siphonostele.

Reference:

1. “Stelar Organisation in Vascular Plants (With Diagram).” Biology Discussion, 16 Sept. 2016, Available here.
2. “Stele (Biology).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 23 June 2018, Available here.

Image Courtesy:

1. “Protostele” By EncycloPetey at English Wikipedia – Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons (Public Domain) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “Siphonostele” By EncycloPetey at English Wikipedia – Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons (Public Domain) via Commons Wikimedia