Sterility
The condition of an organism or environment characterized by the total absence of living microorganisms or the inability to reproduce sexually.
Также говорят: infertility, barrenness, asepsis
In agronomy, sterility refers either to the absence of biological contaminants or to the reproductive failure of plants. Microbiological sterility is essential in plant tissue culture labs, where even minor contamination by spores or bacteria can ruin valuable germplasm and experimental trials.
Reproductive sterility is a strategic tool in plant breeding, specifically for the production of hybrid seeds. By utilizing male-sterile lines, breeders effectively prevent self-pollination, ensuring that cross-pollination occurs to produce high-performing hybrid seeds.
A common error is the failure to maintain sterile conditions for pruning tools, which spreads viruses and fungal infections across fields. Practitioners should also distinguish between induced genetic sterility and environmentally triggered sterility; for example, heat stress during the flowering stage often causes transient pollen sterility, which significantly reduces crop yields.