filament

1. The stalk of a *stamen , bearing the anther at its apex.

2. A long strand composed of numerous similar cells joined end to end. The thalli of many algae, e.g. Spirogyra, are filamentous. Certain higher plants, e.g. the Musci and Filicales have a shortlived phase of filamentous growth following germination of the spore (see protonema ). The nonphotosynthetic filaments forming the mycelia of fungi are termed *hyphae.