Pollen ontogenesis in Oenothera: a comparison of genotypically normal anthers with the male-sterile mutant sterilis

Summary A 12-stage normal table of anther development in Oenothera, is presented. The stages are characterized by developmental steps in the reproductive cells and the tapetum, including waves of amylogenesis and lipogenesis as well as the production of the sporoderm layers. This is compared to a corresponding table for the male-sterile (mst) mutant sterilis (ster). Differences between the development of fertile and mst anthers appear after the liberation of the microspores from the tetrads. Male sterility results from a malfunction of the tapetum in the production of ektexine sporopollenin precursors, which aggregate in the tapetal cells. The consequence is the absence of ektexine from the microspores. The endexine is then dissolved, presumably by an enzyme. This process leads to naked microspores whose unprotected cytoplasms are attacked by hydrolytic enzymes present in the thecal fluid. At anthesis the anthers contain only undefined remnants of microspores and tapetum.     

Plastid DNA in the mitochondrial genome of Oenothera: Intra- and interorganellar rearrangements involving part of the plastid ribosomal cistron

Summary Part of the plastid rRNA cistron is present in the mitochondrial genome of Oenothera. This sequence of 2081 nucleotides contains the 3 half of the plastid 23 S rRNA, the adjacent intergenic region and the 4.5 S rRNA. Secondary intramitochondrial sequence rearrangements involve this region of plastid origin and the gene encoding the putative mitochondrial small ribosomal protein S13. Sequence comparison suggests that the interorganellar transfer event occurred a long time ago. The mitochondrial sequence contains regions more homologous to the plastid DNA from tobacco than from Oenothera itself in the regions analysed, suggesting faster sequence evolution in plastids than in mitochondria of Oenothera.     

A point mutation in the core subunit gene of yeast mitochondrial RNA polymerase is suppressed by a high level of specificity factor MTF1

Analysis of a transcribed region in the mitochondrial genome of Oenothera revealed an open reading frame (ORF) of 577 codons (orf577) that is also conserved in carrot, here encoding a protein of 579 amino acids (orf579). RNA editing alters the mRNA sequence of orf577 in Oenothera with 46 C to U transitions, many of which improve sequence similarity with the homologous Marchantia gene orf509. The deduced polypeptides show significant similarity with the ccll-encoded protein involved in cytochrome c biogenesis in the photosynthetic bacterium Rhodobacter capsulatus. A highly conserved domain is also found in plastid ORFs, suggesting that these bacterial, chloroplast and mitochondrial genes encode polypeptides with analogous functions in assembly and maturation of cytochromes c.     

Oenothera mitochondrial orf454, a gene involved in cytochrome c biogenesis corresponds to orf169 and orf322 of Marchantia

We have characterized a mitochondrial gene in Oenothera, designated orf454, capable of encoding a component of the cytochrome c biogenesis system. This open reading frame is interrupted by an intron of 941 nucleotides showing high similarity to a group II intron residing in the rpl2 gene. RNA editing, which is observed at 18 cytidine positions within the orf454 reading frame, improves the similarity to protein-coding sequences in bacteria and higher plants and removes the last 16 amino acids. orf454 also shows high sequence similarity to two overlapping reading frames (orf169 and orf322) of Marchantia mitochondria. These ORFs belong to an operon-like cluster of genes in the liverwort that is not conserved in Oenothera mitochondria. However, in bacteria these reading frames are organized like the Marchantia gene cluster. It has been shown by genetical analysis in Rhodobacter capsulatus that these genes are essential for cytochrome c biogenesis. Genes of bacterial operons — ccl1 in Rhodobacter and yejR and nrfE in Escherichia coli — show high sequence similarity to the mitochondrial reading frames orf577 and orf454 of Oenothera. orf454, which we describe here, is homologous to the C-terminal region of these bacterial genes, while the previously described orf577 is homologous to the N-terminal region.     

The plastome mutator of Oenothera continues to function as originally described

Summary Recently, Lindenhahn et al. (1985) hypothesized that the plastome mutator (pm) system in Oenothera originated through contaiminating cross-pollination and that the variegation was an example of hybrid plastome-genome incompatibility. Their evidence was based on restriction pattern analyses of white sectors which showed wild-type plastome III patterns rather than the wild-type plastome I patterns of the green portions of their plants. Their hypothesis does not adequately account for the results which our laboratories have obtained independently; the pm-system of Oenothera continues to generate many new and different plastome mutations following the genetic parameters as published originally (Epp 1973). Our studies support mutator gene function. The restriction pattern of the chloroplast DNA of five newly isolated pm-induced variegation sectors are reported here to show a restriction pattern identical to the green wild-type plastids. The restriction pattern reported by Lindenhahn et al. (1985) for their white sector plastids is different than we would expect from a pm-induced plastome mutation. Their overall analysis did not utilize many of the salient features of the genetics of Oenothera and of the pm-system. The white sectors they observed are probably due to an accidental contamination by plastome III plastids. Suggestions are made for delineating experimentally plastome mutations and hybrid incompatibility. For future analyses, a comparative study of numerous pm-induced sectors is recommended, since the pm-system readily generates many different plastome mutations with independent origins. This comparison would greatly assist in the interpretation of restriction patterns.     

Rps3 and rpl16 genes do not overlap in Oenothera mitochondria: GTG as a potential translation initiation codon in plant mitochondria?

Characterization of the Oenothera mitochondrial ribosomal gene cluster rps19-rps3-rpl16 shows the two genes rps3 and rpl16 to be separated by 9 nucleotides. The first codon of rpl16 is a GTG codon for valine and the only potential translational start. This GTG codon is conserved at the same position in maize, Petunia and Marchantia mitochondria, while sequences diverge upstream. These observations suggest that GTG at least at this position may act as translation initiation codon in plant mitochondria. Analysis of RNA editing suggests both genes to code for functional ribosomal proteins in Oenothera mitochondria. A duplication/recombination event at a decanucleotide in the intron of rps3 created a pseudogene missing part of the intron and the 3 exon.     

生态因子对滇重楼花药开裂的影响

滇重楼为延龄草科重楼属植物,具有极高的药用价值,由于重楼传统药用部位生长缓慢、繁殖力低下,以及人们对野生重楼资源的过度采挖使其资源日趋枯竭。滇重楼的花药在整个花期中存在开裂－关闭的现象,花药的有效闭合应是保护花粉、延长花粉寿命、增强雄性适合度的一种适应机制。该研究以滇重楼为对象,通过设计正交实验和对比实验,观测其花药开裂过程中的光照强度、温度、湿度的变化,探究光照强度、温度、湿度等生态因子对滇重楼花药开裂的影响以及滇重楼花药开裂与生态因子变化的关系。结果表明：(1)在滇重楼花药开裂的过程中,光照强度增强、温度升高、相对湿度下降;(2)温度是影响滇重楼花药开裂时间的主导因子,升温促进花药开裂,降温促进花药关闭;(3)高湿度及黑暗推迟花药开裂,但并不能阻止花药开裂;(4)低温可使滇重楼花药持续关闭,而光照强度越高,花药持续关闭所需的温度越低。该研究有利于解释滇重楼花药白天开裂夜晚关闭的现象与环境因子的关系,对滇重楼的栽培育种提供理论指导。     

Corona and anther skirt in Hoya (Apocynaceae, Marsdenieae)

The so called revolute margins of the corona in the genus Hoya (Marsdenieae) are homologous to the anther skirt. The anther skirt is primarily formed of two latero-basal lobes of the anther. In Hoya these lobes are fused with the underside of the basal process of the staminal corona and have evolved into a dominant structure of the gynostegium. Embedded in the anther skirt is the nectar tube, formed by the basal elongation of the guide rail. In many species, however, the function of nectar secretion for pollinator reward has been transferred to the anther skirt beneath the basal process of the corona. A survey of the Marsdenieae shows that the potential for developing an anther skirt is present in several other genera as well, though nowhere has it evolved into such elaborated structures as in Hoya.     

A genetic contribution to the taxonomy ofOenothera sect.Oenothera (including subsectionsEuoenothera,Emersonia, Raimannia andMunzia)

Based on an analysis of results from experimental hybridization, the plants assigned byMunz toOenothera subg.Oenothera and subg.Raimannia, now divided into approximately 76 species, are referred to a single section,Oenothera. This section is in turn divided into five subsections:Euoenothera, Munzia, Raimannia, Emersonia, and an undescribed group of three species related toOenothera pubescens. Euoenothera is maintained in the traditional sense, and includes about 14 species of North America, widely naturalized elsewhere.Munzia consists of 45 species, comprising three series, and native to South America.Raimannia is restricted to a group of approximately 11 North American species.Emersonia comprises four rather heterogenous species of northern Mexico and southern New Mexico, of whichOenothera macrosceles, O. maysillesii, andO. organensis have been described. Within these four subsections, interspecific hybrids can be made in general, although plastid differentiation often leads to incompatibilities. With varying degrees of difficulty, hybrids were produced in all intersectional combinations involvingEuoenothera, Emersonia, Munzia, andRaimannia, the most difficult being those betweenEmersonia andRaimannia. Based on their habit and distribution,Emersonia species, and especiallyOenothera maysillesii, appear to resemble most closely the common ancestor of the section,Euoenothera andMunzia to have been derived from it or its common ancestor, andRaimannia perhaps to be more closely related to the phylogenetic branch that leads toEuoenothera.     

Oenothera chloroplast DNA polymorphisms associated with plastome mutator activity

Summary Oenothera plants homozygous for a recessive allele at the plastome mutator (pm) locus show non-Mendelian mutation frequencies that are 1000-fold higher than spontaneous levels. Chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) was isolated from nine mutants and two green isolates of the plastome mutator line. cpDNA restriction patterns were compared to cpDNA from a representative of the progenitor Johansen strain, and cpDNAs from all eleven plastome mutator lines show changes of fragment mobility due to deletion events at five discrete regions of the plastome. Most of the mutants have cpDNA restriction patterns identical to that of one of the green isolates from the plastome mutator line, and therefore, most of the differences in fragment length are probably not responsible for the mutant phenotypes. In contrast to the plastome mutator line, cpDNA from several populations of a closely related wild-type Oenothera species have few restriction fragment length polymorphisms. This suggests that both mutation frequencies and site-specific cpDNA deletions are elevated in the plastome mutator line, and implicates a defect in the cpDNA repair or replication machinery.     

雄性不育无籽刺梨花药发育过程中生理特性的初步研究

为探究无籽刺梨(Rosasterilis)雄性不育原因,采用1%I2-KI染色法观察花粉活性,并对无籽刺梨和正常可育刺梨(R.roburghii)花药不同发育时期的生理生化指标进行了研究。结果表明,无籽刺梨的败育花粉占95.5%,刺梨的正常花粉占99%。刺梨花药的可溶性蛋白质、可溶性糖和脯氨酸含量在各时期的总体变化趋势相似,可溶性淀粉含量呈上升趋势,而无籽刺梨花药的可溶性蛋白质、可溶性糖、淀粉和脯氨酸含量在各时期的变化无规律可循,且花粉成熟期这4种物质的含量均明显低于刺梨,即花粉成熟期缺少各营养物质的积累。在花药发育过程中,无籽刺梨的SOD活性均低于刺梨;MDA含量呈上升趋势,且上升幅度比刺梨大;MDA含量和POD活性均高于刺梨。因此,营养物质的匮乏和酶系统的紊乱可能是导致无籽刺梨雄性不育的原因。     

Chloroplast DNA differences between two species of Oenothera subsection Munzia: location in the chloroplast genome and relevance to possible interactions between nuclear and plastid genomes

Summary The chloroplast DNAs (cpDNAs) of Oenothera berteriana and Oe. odorata (subsection Munzia) were examined by restriction endonuclease analysis with Sal I, Pvu II, Kpn I, Pst I, Hind III, and Bam HI. The fragment patterns show that these cpDNAs have all 133 restriction sites in common as well as a lot of individual bands. Nevertheless the cpDNAs of the two species can be distinguished by distinct differences in size between a small number of fragments. The 42 cleavage sites produced by Sal I, Pvu II and Kpn I were mapped on the circular cpDNAs. This was achieved by an approach which combined experimental and mathematical procedures. The overall serial order of the fragments was found to be the same for both cpDNAs. The size differences of individual fragments in the Sal I, Pvu II and Kpn I patterns between Oe. berteriana and Oe. odorata cpDNA are located within five regions scattered along the plastid chromosome. Two of these regions have been localized in the larger and one in the smaller of the two single-copy parts of the cpDNA molecule. The remaining two overlap the borders between the large single-copy and each of the duplicated parts of the molecule. The positions of distinct restriction sites are altered among the two Oenothera plastome DNAs by 0.02–0.4 MDa (30–600 base pairs). These alterations probably result from insertions/deletions.Abbreviations cpDNA chloroplast, plastid DNA - Oe. Oenothera - MDa Megadalton - rRNA, rDNA ribosomal RNA, DNA Dedicated to Professor Berthold Schwemmle, Tübingen, on the occasion of his 60th birthday     

Comparative mapping of the barley genome with male and female recombination-derived, doubled haploid populations

Male (anther culture) and female (Hordeum bulbosum) derived, doubled haploid populations were used to map the barley genome and thus determine the different recombination rates occurring during meiosis in the F1 hybrid donor plants. The anther culture-derived (male recombination) population showed an 18% overall increase in recombination rate. This increased recombination rate was observed for every chromosome and most of the chromosome arms. Examination of linkage distances between individual markers revealed eight segments with significantly higher recombination in the anther culture-derived population, and one in the Hordeum bulbosum-derived population. Very strong distortions of single locus segregations were observed in the anther culture-derived population, but map distances were not affected significantly by these distortions. There were 1.047 and 0.912 recombinations per chromosome in the anther culture and Hordeum bulbosum-derived doubled haploid populations, respectively.     

黄花大苞姜花药发育qRT-PCR内参基因筛选

qRT-PCR技术具有定量准确、灵敏度高、重复性好等特点,被广泛用于基因表达分析。内参基因的稳定性对于准确分析实验结果非常重要。该研究以黄花大苞姜(Caulokaempferia coenobialis)花粉母细胞时期(PMC)、四分体时期(TET)、成熟花粉时期(MP)的花药组织为材料,基于3个阶段花药转录组表达谱数据以及常用传统内参基因,筛选出Glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase(GAPDH)、Malate dehydrogenase(MDH)、α-tubulin3(TUA3)、β-tubulin7(TUB7)和Actin6(ACT6)作为候选内参基因,进行qRT-PCR分析;并运用BestKeeper、geNorm和Normfinder软件综合分析5个候选内参基因在黄花大苞姜花药发育过程中的表达稳定性。结果表明:MDH和TUB7的表达最稳定,ACT6的稳定性最差;分别以MDH和TUB7作为内参,分析GBE1在黄花大苞姜花药发育中的表达模式,并与该基因在花药转录组中的表达模式做相关系数分析,3种表达模式结果一致,进一步验证了MDH和TUB7的表达稳定性。这说明MDH和TUB7适合作为qRTPCR分析黄花大苞姜花药发育过程中相关基因表达模式的内参基因。该研究结果为黄花大苞姜花药发育分子机制相关研究奠定了基础,也为姜科花药发育相关内参基因的选择提供了参考。     

Anther culture of kale (Brassica oleracea L. convar.acephala (DC.) Alef.)

The pollen development and androgenic ability of 18 kale (Brassica oleracea convar.acephala) genotypes was observed during an anther culture study. Anther culture was successful in 6 of the genotypes and the highest yield obtained was 17 embryos per 100 anthers plated. Two stages of anther development were identified as being responsive to anther culture. The first and most responsive was that corresponding to the late uninucleated stage and the second to the late binucleated stage. These stages correspond with the onset of mitotic events in the microspores. Pollen viability was studied and low viability was noted which declined to zero after 9 days of anther culture. The initial viability level however was not clearly related to androgenic ability. The significance of the production of haploid and dihaploid kale genotypes in the study and breeding of resistance to clubroot is discussed.     

The 18S and 5S ribosomal RNA genes in Oenothera mitochondria: Sequence rearrangments in the 18S and 5S rRNA genes of higher plants

Summary The 18S and 5S ribosomal RNA genes are separated by a 582-nucleotide-long spacer region in the Oenothera mitochondrial genome. The 5S rRNA gene is 7 bp shorter than the maize and 3 bp shorter than the wheat sequences due to a 4 bp deletion in a side arm of the secondary structure model. The 18S rRNA molecule can be folded analogously to the maize and wheat mitochondrial and Escherichia coli models for this rRNA. Most of the sequence variations between the wheat and Oenothera molecules are located in the variable domains identified for the wheat 18S rRNA.The comparison of the 18S rRNA from the mitochondria of Oenothera as a representative of dicotyledonous plants with that of the monocotyledons wheat and maize provides an indication of the rate of diversity in higher plant mitochondrial genes and gives direct evidence for sequence rearrangements within the 18 S rRNA genes.     

中国特有种苦绳(广义夹竹桃科)的大小孢子发生和雌雄配子体发育及其分类学意义

近年来的分子系统学把狭义萝藦科和狭义夹竹桃科合并为广义夹竹桃科,包括5个亚科和25个族,但亚科和族间的亲缘关系较为复杂,亟待多学科证据澄清。本文利用常规石蜡切片技术观察了马利筋亚科南山藤属中的中国特有植物苦绳(Dregea sinensis var. sinensis)的孢子发生和配子体发育,结合已有资料比较了5个亚科的胚胎学特征。结果表明:(1)苦绳的花药由一对侧生并列药室组成,各有一个花粉团。(2)花药壁有6层,由外至内分别为表皮、2层药室内壁、中层和2层绒毡层,花药壁发育模式属于多层型。(3)绒毡层细胞单核,排成2列,为腺质型; 在小孢子四分体形成时期,药室内壁发生明显纤维状加厚; 花药成熟时,位于药室远轴最外侧处的花药壁发生断裂,准备散粉。(4)小孢子母细胞减数分裂中,胞质分裂方式为连续型,小孢子四分体排列方式为左右对称; 成熟花粉粒为3-细胞型,排列紧密,形成花粉团。(5)雌蕊含有两枚离生心皮,具边缘胎座,胚珠倒生,单珠被,薄珠心,蓼型胚囊。本文观察到的这些胚胎学特征为牛奶菜族提供了新资料。同时,胚胎学特征在5个亚科间的区别和联系,支持广义夹竹桃科的成立。     

毛竹的花药发育研究

竹类植物因有着较长的开花周期,其生殖生物学研究的报道相对较少。该研究采用石蜡切片与野外观察的方法,对毛竹花药的发育以及花药发育与花序的关系进行了研究。结果表明:毛竹的花药壁结构包括4层细胞:表皮细胞、药室内壁细胞、中层细胞和绒毡层细胞。药室内壁和中层都只有一层细胞,而且细胞形状较扁,花药发育后期药室内壁会逐渐降解,而中层则会完全解体消失。花药壁的发育为单子叶型,绒毡层为腺质型,而且只有一层,细胞径向较长,最后也会消失。小孢子母细胞减数分裂时,胞质分裂方式为连续型。形成的小孢子经一次有丝分裂后逐渐形成成熟花粉粒,大多为二细胞型,很少产生三细胞型。此外,还发现毛竹花药的发育与花序形态变化存在着相对应的关系。野外连续观察和切片发现,随着花序形态的不断发育变化,首先花药开始形成并不断分化,药壁备层也逐渐形成;接着小孢子逐渐成熟,备层也慢慢随之解体、消失;最后花药逐渐开裂并开始散粉。该研究结果不仅丰富了毛竹和竹类生殖生物学的研究内容,而且对毛竹种质的研究也具有重要意义。