Microsporogenesis in a normal line and in the ogu cytoplasmic male-sterile line of Brassica napus

Summary Under an intermediate temperature regime (23° C/18° C; day/night), microsporogenesis in stamens of the ogu cytoplasmic male-sterile (CMS) line of Brassica napus terminated by the tetrad stage, although in some cases degeneration of the sporogenous tissue occurred prior to meiosis. In most cases the tetrads were collapsed and bounded by a sparse exine, but contained many organelles. Also, the tapetum in CMS anthers was abnormal and often highly vacuolated by the tetrad stage. Under low temperature conditions (18° C/15° C; day/night), neither microsporogenous nor tapetal tissues were observed. In the normal stamens, no differences were observed under different temperature regimes. In conjunction with the adjoining paper, this study demonstrates that temperature conditions strongly affect the cytological processes associated with microsporogenesis in the CMS anthers.