Transcript profiles of maize embryo sacs and preliminary identification of genes involved in the embryo sac-pollen tube interaction.

ABSTRACT: The embryo sac, the female gametophyte of flowering plants, plays important roles in the pollination and fertilization process. Maize (Zea mays L.) is a model monocot, but little is known about the interactions between its embryo sac and the pollen tube. In this study, we compared the transcript profiles of mature embryo sacs, mature embryo sacs 14-16 h after pollination, and mature nucelli. Comparing the transcript profiles of the embryo sacs before and after the entry of the pollen tube, we identified 3467 differentially expressed transcripts (3382 differentially expressed genes; DEGs). The DEGs were grouped into 22 functional categories. Among the DEGs, 221 genes were induced upon the entry of the pollen tube, and many of them encoded proteins involved in RNA binding, processing, and tr

SUBMITTER: Wang SS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4269116 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature