5 Key Difference Between Exine and Intine

A pollen grain has two prominent layered wall Exine and Intine. Pollen grain represent the male gametophytes. In this post we will discuss the key difference between exine and intine layer of pollen grains.

Difference Between Exine and Intine

The key differences between Exine layer and intine layer is explained below in tabular form.

Exine	Intine
Exine is outer layer of Pollen grain.	Intine is inner layer of Pollen grain.
Hard in nature.	Comparatively softer.
Made up of sporopollenin.	Made up of cellulose and pectin.
Protects pollen in adverse conditions. Like High temperature , strong acidic and alkaline medium.	Nourishes and helps is maturation of pollen grain.
Exhibits pattern of arrays is outer layer.	No such patterns are observed in intine layer.

Exine vs Intine Infographic

Exine

Exine is outer hard layer of pollen made up of sporopollenin.It has germ pores where sporopollenin is absent.The Exine layer exhibits fascinating arrays of patterns and designs.Outer layer of exine has folds and spikes which helps pollen to attach with pollinator.

Intine

Intine is the inner wall of pollen grain.It is a thin and continuous layer made up of cellulose and pectin.

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Sporopollenin

Exine layer of pollen grain is made up of sporopollenin.It is one of the most resistant organic material known so far.It can withstand high temperatures, highly acidic and alkaline conditions.Pollen grains are well preserved as fossils because of the presence of Sporopollenin.

Similarities Between Exine and Intine

• Exine and Intine both are covering layer of pollen.
• They both made up of different complex polysaccharide subunit.
• Both are compulsory components for survival of pollen.

Faq Related to Exine and Intine