CHEMICAL AND MICROSCOPIC CHARACTERIZATION OF INNER SEED COATS OF FOSSIL WATER PLANTS

Inner seed coat layers (tegmens) of four different species of fossil w ater plants have been analyzed using light microscopy, scanning- and t ransmission-electron microscopy, and Curie-point pyrolysis. Microscopi cal analysis of the tegmens show two layers both comparable with a cut icle. Furthermore, the pyrolysates revealed the presence of highly ali phatic macromolecules comparable with cutan. The resistant constituent s in the tegmens of two of the species also contained tocopheryl units which may serve as an additional source for prist-1-ene in pyrolysate s of kerogens or of pristane upon natural thermodegradation.