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Cornaro L, Banfi C, Cucinotta M, Colombo L, van Dijk PJ. Asexual reproduction through seeds: the complex case of diplosporous apomixis. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY 2023; 74:2462-2478. [PMID: 36794770 DOI: 10.1093/jxb/erad054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2022] [Accepted: 02/07/2023] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Apomixis is considered a potentially revolutionary tool to generate high-quality food at a lower cost and shorter developmental time due to clonal seed production through apomeiosis and parthenogenesis. In the diplosporous type of apomixis, meiotic recombination and reduction are circumvented either by avoiding or failing meiosis or by a mitotic-like division. Here, we review the literature on diplospory, from early cytological studies dating back to the late 19th century to recent genetic findings. We discuss diplosporous developmental mechanisms, including their inheritance. Furthermore, we compare the strategies adopted to isolate the genes controlling diplospory with those to produce mutants forming unreduced gametes. Nowadays, the dramatically improved technologies of long-read sequencing and targeted CRISPR/Cas mutagenesis justify the expectation that natural diplospory genes will soon be identified. Their identification will answer questions such as how the apomictic phenotype can be superimposed upon the sexual pathway and how diplospory genes have evolved. This knowledge will contribute to the application of apomixis in agriculture.
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Affiliation(s)
- Letizia Cornaro
- Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, Via Giovanni Celoria 26, 20133, Milano, Italy
| | - Camilla Banfi
- Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, Via Giovanni Celoria 26, 20133, Milano, Italy
| | - Mara Cucinotta
- Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, Via Giovanni Celoria 26, 20133, Milano, Italy
| | - Lucia Colombo
- Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, Via Giovanni Celoria 26, 20133, Milano, Italy
| | - Peter J van Dijk
- KeyGene N.V., Agro Business Park 90, 6708 PW Wageningen, The Netherlands
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Li X, Zhang J, Huang J, Xu J, Chen Z, Copenhaver GP, Wang Y. Regulation of interference-sensitive crossover distribution ensures crossover assurance in Arabidopsis. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:e2107543118. [PMID: 34795056 PMCID: PMC8617516 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2107543118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
During meiosis, crossovers (COs) are typically required to ensure faithful chromosomal segregation. Despite the requirement for at least one CO between each pair of chromosomes, closely spaced double COs are usually underrepresented due to a phenomenon called CO interference. Like Mus musculus and Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Arabidopsis thaliana has both interference-sensitive (Class I) and interference-insensitive (Class II) COs. However, the underlying mechanism controlling CO distribution remains largely elusive. Both AtMUS81 and AtFANCD2 promote the formation of Class II CO. Using both AtHEI10 and AtMLH1 immunostaining, two markers of Class I COs, we show that AtFANCD2 but not AtMUS81 is required for normal Class I CO distribution among chromosomes. Depleting AtFANCD2 leads to a CO distribution pattern that is intermediate between that of wild-type and a Poisson distribution. Moreover, in Atfancm, Atfigl1, and Atrmi1 mutants where increased Class II CO frequency has been reported previously, we observe Class I CO distribution patterns that are strikingly similar to Atfancd2. Surprisingly, we found that AtFANCD2 plays opposite roles in regulating CO frequency in Atfancm compared with either in Atfigl1 or Atrmi1. Together, these results reveal that although AtFANCD2, AtFANCM, AtFIGL1, and AtRMI1 regulate Class II CO frequency by distinct mechanisms, they have similar roles in controlling the distribution of Class I COs among chromosomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiang Li
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Biodiversity Sciences and Ecological Engineering, Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China
| | - Jun Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Biodiversity Sciences and Ecological Engineering, Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China
| | - Jiyue Huang
- Department of Biology and the Integrative Program for Biological and Genome Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599
| | - Jing Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Biodiversity Sciences and Ecological Engineering, Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China
| | - Zhiyu Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Biodiversity Sciences and Ecological Engineering, Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China
| | - Gregory P Copenhaver
- Department of Biology and the Integrative Program for Biological and Genome Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, NC 27599
| | - Yingxiang Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China;
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Biodiversity Sciences and Ecological Engineering, Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China
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Ozias-Akins P, Conner JA. Clonal Reproduction through Seeds in Sight for Crops. Trends Genet 2020; 36:215-226. [PMID: 31973878 DOI: 10.1016/j.tig.2019.12.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2019] [Revised: 11/27/2019] [Accepted: 12/10/2019] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
Apomixis or asexual reproduction through seeds, enables the preservation of hybrid vigor. Hybrids are heterozygous and segregate for genotype and phenotype upon sexual reproduction. While apomixis, that is, clonal reproduction, is intuitively antithetical to diversity, it is rarely obligate and actually provides a mechanism to recover and maintain superior hybrid gene combinations for which sexual reproduction would reveal deleterious alleles in less fit genotypes. Apomixis, widespread across flowering plant orders, does not occur in major crop species, yet its introduction could add a valuable tool to the breeder's toolbox. In the past decade, discovery of genetic mechanisms regulating meiosis, embryo and endosperm development have facilitated proof-of-concept for the synthesis of apomixis, bringing apomictic crops closer to reality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peggy Ozias-Akins
- Department of Horticulture and Institute of Plant Breeding and Genomics, University of Georgia, Tifton, GA 31793, USA.
| | - Joann A Conner
- Department of Horticulture and Institute of Plant Breeding and Genomics, University of Georgia, Tifton, GA 31793, USA
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