Photoperiod Extension Enhances Sexual Megaspore Formation and Triggers Metabolic Reprogramming in Facultative Apomictic Ranunculus auricomus.

ABSTRACT: Meiosis, the key step of sexual reproduction, persists in facultative apomictic plants functional to some extent. However, it still remains unclear how and why proportions of reproductive pathways vary under different environmental stress conditions. We hypothesized that oxidative stress mediates alterations of developmental pathways. In apomictic plants we expected that megasporogenesis, the stage directly after meiosis, would be more affected than later stages of seed development. To simulate moderate stress conditions we subjected clone-mates of facultative apomictic Ranunculus auricomus to 10 h photoperiods, reflecting natural conditions, and extended ones (16.5 h). Reproduction mode was screened directly after megasporogenesis (microscope) and at seed stage (flow cytometric seed scree

SUBMITTER: Klatt S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4781874 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature