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An antheridium is a haploid structure or organ producing and containing male (called antherozoids or sperm). The plural form is antheridia, and a structure containing one or more antheridia is called an androecium. The androecium is also the collective term for the of .
Antheridia are present in the gametophyte phase of like and . Many and some Fungus, for example, and , also have antheridia during their reproductive stages. In and , the male gametophytes have been reduced to Pollen, and in most of these, the antheridia have been reduced to a single generative cell within the pollen grain. During pollination, this generative cell divides and gives rise to sperm cells.
The female counterpart to the antheridium in cryptogams is the archegonium, and in flowering plants is the gynoecium.
An antheridium typically consists of sterile cells and spermatogenous tissue. The sterile cells may form a central support structure or surround the spermatogenous tissue as a protective jacket. The spermatogenous cells give rise to via mitotic cell division. In some , the antheridium is borne on an Gametophore, a stalk-like structure that carries the antheridium at its apex.
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