MALE STERILITY IN SOYBEAN (GLYCINE MAX). I. PHENOTYPIC EXPRESSION OF THE ms2 MUTANT

The effects of a nuclear male-sterile mutant (ms2) of soybean, Glycine max (L.) Merr., on anther development were analyzed by means of light- and electron-microscopy. The structure of microspore mother cells (MMCs) in male-sterile plants was identical to that of male-fertile plants. Meiosis was completed, and tetrads of microspores formed. Microspores degenerated after the deposition of primexine and probacullae. The sheath of callose surrounding microspores did not dissolve. No structural abnormalities of the microspores were detected before the onset of degeneration. The tapetal and anther wall layers were characterized by aberrant development. Tapetal abnormalities included premature vacuolation, a persistent inner tangential cell wall, failure to differentiate normal concentrations of endoplasmic reticulum and dictyosomes, disruption of plastids, and premature degeneration. Malfunction of the tapetal layer preceded, and may have induced, microspore degeneration. Gross anther morphology was not influenced until advanced stages of development.