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Withers KA, Falls K, Youngstrom CE, Nguyen T, DeWald A, Yarvis RM, Simons GP, Flanagan R, Bui LT, Irish EE, Cheng CL. A Ceratopteris EXCESS MICROSPOROCYTES1 suppresses reproductive transition in the fern vegetative leaves. PLANT SCIENCE : AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL PLANT BIOLOGY 2023; 335:111812. [PMID: 37532002 DOI: 10.1016/j.plantsci.2023.111812] [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: 03/10/2023] [Revised: 06/28/2023] [Accepted: 07/28/2023] [Indexed: 08/04/2023]
Abstract
Land plant sexual reproduction involves the transition of cells from somatic to reproductive identity during post-embryonic development. In Arabidopsis, the leucine-rich repeat receptor-like kinase EXCESS MICROSPOROCYTES1 (EXS/EMS1) restricts the number of sporogenous cells during the transition from diploid tissue to haploid spore production by promoting the formation of the tapetum cell layer within the anther. Although all land plants studied contain EMS1 genes, its function is unknown beyond a few angiosperms. In the model fern Ceratopteris (Ceratopteris richardii), we discovered an EMS1 homolog (CrEMS1) that functions to suppress formation of reproductive structures on vegetative leaves of the fern sporophyte, a role not found in angiosperms. Suppression of CrEMS1 by RNAi did not affect sporogenesis on reproductive leaves but did affect antheridium production of the fern gametophyte. Expression patterns of CrEMS1 across developmental stages suggest threshold levels of CrEMS1 control the specification of reproductive organs during both generations of the fern. Additional EMS1 homologs present in the fern genome suggest a dynamic role of EMS1 receptors in the evolution of reproductive development in vascular plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelley A Withers
- Department of Biology, University of Iowa, 129 E. Jefferson St., Iowa City, IA 52242, USA
| | - Kevin Falls
- Department of Biology, University of Iowa, 129 E. Jefferson St., Iowa City, IA 52242, USA
| | | | - Tommy Nguyen
- Department of Biology, University of Iowa, 129 E. Jefferson St., Iowa City, IA 52242, USA
| | - Anika DeWald
- Department of Biology, University of Iowa, 129 E. Jefferson St., Iowa City, IA 52242, USA
| | - Rebekah M Yarvis
- Department of Biology, University of Iowa, 129 E. Jefferson St., Iowa City, IA 52242, USA
| | - Gabriel P Simons
- Department of Biology, University of Iowa, 129 E. Jefferson St., Iowa City, IA 52242, USA
| | - Robert Flanagan
- Department of Biology, University of Iowa, 129 E. Jefferson St., Iowa City, IA 52242, USA
| | - Linh T Bui
- The Translational Genomics Research Institute, 445 N. Fifth St., Phoenix, AZ 85004, USA
| | - Erin E Irish
- Department of Biology, University of Iowa, 129 E. Jefferson St., Iowa City, IA 52242, USA
| | - Chi-Lien Cheng
- Department of Biology, University of Iowa, 129 E. Jefferson St., Iowa City, IA 52242, USA.
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Bai SN, Rao GY, Yang J. Origins of the seed: The "golden-trio hypothesis". FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2022; 13:965000. [PMID: 36105705 PMCID: PMC9465013 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2022.965000] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2022] [Accepted: 08/05/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
The seed is an evolutionary innovation in the plant kingdom. While human civilization depends heavily on seed production, how the seed trait emerged remains elusive. In this opinion article, a "golden-trio hypothesis" is proposed based on our investigations of LEC1 gene functions in Adiantum capillus-veneris. This hypothesis posits that a "seed program" arose from spatiotemporal integration of three key components: assimilate flow, ABA-mediated stress responses, and stress-induced LEC1 expression. Thus, the evolutionary innovation of seeds should be considered not a simple event resulting from new genes; rather, it represents the outcome of a series of physiological and morphological innovations that emerged prior to and regardless of the origin of the seed program. This new perspective could help us tackle some long-standing questions around the puzzling origin of seeds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shu-Nong Bai
- College of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Guang-Yuan Rao
- College of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Ji Yang
- School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
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Bai SN. Are unisexual flowers an appropriate model to study plant sex determination? JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY 2020; 71:4625-4628. [PMID: 32367137 PMCID: PMC7410173 DOI: 10.1093/jxb/eraa207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2019] [Accepted: 04/28/2020] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Shu-Nong Bai
- State Key Laboratory of Protein & Plant Gene Research, Quantitative Biology Center, College of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
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