ISSN:
1432-2145
Keywords:
Porogamy
;
Syngamy
;
Incongruity
;
Unilateral cross-incompatibility
Source:
Springer Online Journal Archives 1860-2000
Topics:
Biology
Notes:
Summary The failure of pollen-tube dissolution in the synergid region, with subsequent pollen-tube overgrowth well into the central cell, was observed within embryo sacs following interspecific crosses between Solanum melongena and S. sisymbriifolium and between Lycopersicon esculentum and L. peruvianum. Such pollen-tube hypertrophy (PTH) was examined under fluorescence using both light and confocal microscopy in order to characterize this anomalous pollen-tube behavior and to verify its occurrence within the embryo sac central cell. Three genetically unrelated L. esculentum cultivars (‘Peto 95’, ‘Apex 1000’, ‘Nagcarlang’) were utilized as the female parents in interspecific pollinations with L. peruvianum accession LA 1708, and seed set was obtained from all crosses. It was observed that PTH was not a rare event in these crosses, with the proportion of PTH ranging from 2.6% to 6.5% of all ovules examined. Self-pollinated controls revealed zero (e.g., ‘Nagcarlang’) to extremely low (〈0.01%) frequencies (‘Apex 1000’ and ‘Peto 95’). The differences in frequencies suggests that the specific genotypes of the parents has an affect on the occurrence of successful pollen-tube dissolution and sperm-nuclei transfer. Pollen-tube hypertrophy represents a poorly understood, though easily identified, form of fertilization failure occurring within the ovule. Its conspicuous nature, along with a relatively high frequency of occurrence in certain crossing combinations, should provide a valuable opportunity to better study the nature of such fertilization failures in angiosperms.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/BF00228643
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