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Luo H, Zhang H, Wang H. Advance in sex differentiation in cucumber. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2023; 14:1186904. [PMID: 37265638 PMCID: PMC10231686 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2023.1186904] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2023] [Accepted: 04/20/2023] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
Cucumber belongs to the family Cucurbitaceae (melon genus) and is an annual herbaceous vegetable crop. Cucumber is an important cash crop that is grown all over the world. From morphology to cytology, from canonical genetics to molecular biology, researchers have performed much research on sex differentiation and its regulatory mechanism in cucumber, mainly in terms of cucumber sex determination genes, environmental conditions, and the effects of plant hormones, revealing its genetic basis to improve the number of female flowers in cucumber, thus greatly improving the yield of cucumber. This paper reviews the research progress of sex differentiation in cucumber in recent years, mainly focusing on sex-determining genes, environmental conditions, and the influence of phytohormones in cucumber, and provides a theoretical basis and technical support for the realization of high and stable yield cultivation and molecular breeding of cucumber crop traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haiyan Luo
- Key Laboratory for Quality and Safety Control of Subtropical Fruits and Vegetables, Collaborative Innovation Center for Efficient and Green Production of Agriculture in Mountainous Areas of Zhejiang Province, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Horticulture Science, Zhejiang Agriculture and Forestry University, Hangzhou, China
- Engineering Laboratory of Genetic Improvement of Horticultural Crops of Shandong Province, College of Horticulture, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, China
- Hangzhou Lin’an District Agricultural and Rural Bureau, Hangzhou, China
| | - Huanchun Zhang
- Yantai Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Yantai, China
| | - Huasen Wang
- Key Laboratory for Quality and Safety Control of Subtropical Fruits and Vegetables, Collaborative Innovation Center for Efficient and Green Production of Agriculture in Mountainous Areas of Zhejiang Province, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Horticulture Science, Zhejiang Agriculture and Forestry University, Hangzhou, China
- Engineering Laboratory of Genetic Improvement of Horticultural Crops of Shandong Province, College of Horticulture, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, China
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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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3
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Cellular pathways during spawning induction in the starlet sea anemone Nematostella vectensis. Sci Rep 2021; 11:15451. [PMID: 34326433 PMCID: PMC8322078 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-95033-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2021] [Accepted: 07/13/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
In cnidarians, long-term ecological success relies on sexual reproduction. The sea anemone Nematostella vectensis, which has emerged as an important model organism for developmental studies, can be induced for spawning by temperature elevation and light exposure. To uncover molecular mechanisms and pathways underlying spawning, we characterized the transcriptome of Nematostella females before and during spawning induction. We identified an array of processes involving numerous receptors, circadian clock components, cytoskeleton, and extracellular transcripts that are upregulated upon spawning induction. Concurrently, processes related to the cell cycle, fatty acid metabolism, and other housekeeping functions are downregulated. Real-time qPCR revealed that light exposure has a minor effect on expression levels of most examined transcripts, implying that temperature change is a stronger inducer for spawning in Nematostella. Our findings reveal the potential mechanisms that may enable the mesenteries to serve as a gonad-like tissue for the developing oocytes and expand our understanding of sexual reproduction in cnidarians.
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Kao P, Schon MA, Mosiolek M, Enugutti B, Nodine MD. Gene expression variation in Arabidopsis embryos at single-nucleus resolution. Development 2021; 148:dev199589. [PMID: 34142712 PMCID: PMC8276985 DOI: 10.1242/dev.199589] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2021] [Accepted: 05/24/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Soon after fertilization of egg and sperm, plant genomes become transcriptionally activated and drive a series of coordinated cell divisions to form the basic body plan during embryogenesis. Early embryonic cells rapidly diversify from each other, and investigation of the corresponding gene expression dynamics can help elucidate underlying cellular differentiation programs. However, current plant embryonic transcriptome datasets either lack cell-specific information or have RNA contamination from surrounding non-embryonic tissues. We have coupled fluorescence-activated nuclei sorting together with single-nucleus mRNA-sequencing to construct a gene expression atlas of Arabidopsis thaliana early embryos at single-cell resolution. In addition to characterizing cell-specific transcriptomes, we found evidence that distinct epigenetic and transcriptional regulatory mechanisms operate across emerging embryonic cell types. These datasets and analyses, as well as the approach we devised, are expected to facilitate the discovery of molecular mechanisms underlying pattern formation in plant embryos. This article has an associated 'The people behind the papers' interview.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ping Kao
- Gregor Mendel Institute (GMI), Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna Bio Center (VBC), Dr Bohr-Gasse 3, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Michael A. Schon
- Gregor Mendel Institute (GMI), Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna Bio Center (VBC), Dr Bohr-Gasse 3, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Magdalena Mosiolek
- Gregor Mendel Institute (GMI), Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna Bio Center (VBC), Dr Bohr-Gasse 3, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Balaji Enugutti
- Gregor Mendel Institute (GMI), Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna Bio Center (VBC), Dr Bohr-Gasse 3, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Michael D. Nodine
- Gregor Mendel Institute (GMI), Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna Bio Center (VBC), Dr Bohr-Gasse 3, 1030 Vienna, Austria
- Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Wageningen University, Wageningen 6708 PB, The Netherlands
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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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Adhikari PB, Liu X, Wu X, Zhu S, Kasahara RD. Fertilization in flowering plants: an odyssey of sperm cell delivery. PLANT MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2020; 103:9-32. [PMID: 32124177 DOI: 10.1007/s11103-020-00987-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2019] [Accepted: 02/26/2020] [Indexed: 05/22/2023]
Abstract
In light of the available discoveries in the field, this review manuscript discusses on plant reproduction mechanism and molecular players involved in the process. Sperm cells in angiosperms are immotile and are physically distant to the female gametophytes (FG). To secure the production of the next generation, plants have devised a clever approach by which the two sperm cells in each pollen are safely delivered to the female gametophyte where two fertilization events occur (by each sperm cell fertilizing an egg cell and central cell) to give rise to embryo and endosperm. Each of the successfully fertilized ovules later develops into a seed. Sets of macromolecules play roles in pollen tube (PT) guidance, from the stigma, through the transmitting tract and funiculus to the micropylar end of the ovule. Other sets of genetic players are involved in PT reception and in its rupture after it enters the ovule, and yet other sets of genes function in gametic fusion. Angiosperms have come long way from primitive reproductive structure development to today's sophisticated, diverse, and in most cases flamboyant organ. In this review, we will be discussing on the intricate yet complex molecular mechanism of double fertilization and how it might have been shaped by the evolutionary forces focusing particularly on the model plant Arabidopsis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Prakash B Adhikari
- College of Life Science, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian, China
- Horticultural Plant Biology and Metabolomics Center (HBMC), Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian, China
| | - Xiaoyan Liu
- College of Life Science, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian, China
- Horticultural Plant Biology and Metabolomics Center (HBMC), Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian, China
| | - Xiaoyan Wu
- College of Life Science, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian, China
- Horticultural Plant Biology and Metabolomics Center (HBMC), Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian, China
| | - Shaowei Zhu
- College of Life Science, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian, China
- Horticultural Plant Biology and Metabolomics Center (HBMC), Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian, China
| | - Ryushiro D Kasahara
- College of Life Science, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian, China.
- Horticultural Plant Biology and Metabolomics Center (HBMC), Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian, China.
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Coen O, Magnani E. Seed coat thickness in the evolution of angiosperms. Cell Mol Life Sci 2018; 75:2509-2518. [PMID: 29730767 PMCID: PMC6003975 DOI: 10.1007/s00018-018-2816-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2017] [Revised: 04/10/2018] [Accepted: 04/13/2018] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
The seed habit represents a remarkable evolutionary advance in plant sexual reproduction. Since the Paleozoic, seeds carry a seed coat that protects, nourishes and facilitates the dispersal of the fertilization product(s). The seed coat architecture evolved to adapt to different environments and reproductive strategies in part by modifying its thickness. Here, we review the great natural diversity observed in seed coat thickness among angiosperms and its molecular regulation in Arabidopsis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olivier Coen
- Institut Jean-Pierre Bourgin, INRA, AgroParisTech, CNRS, University of Paris-Saclay, Route de St-Cyr (RD10), 78026, Versailles Cedex, France
- Ecole Doctorale 567 Sciences du Végétal, University Paris-Sud, University of Paris-Saclay, bat 360, 91405, Orsay Cedex, France
| | - Enrico Magnani
- Institut Jean-Pierre Bourgin, INRA, AgroParisTech, CNRS, University of Paris-Saclay, Route de St-Cyr (RD10), 78026, Versailles Cedex, France.
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Zhao F, Zheng YF, Zeng T, Sun R, Yang JY, Li Y, Ren DT, Ma H, Xu ZH, Bai SN. Phosphorylation of SPOROCYTELESS/NOZZLE by the MPK3/6 Kinase Is Required for Anther Development. PLANT PHYSIOLOGY 2017; 173:2265-2277. [PMID: 28209842 PMCID: PMC5373039 DOI: 10.1104/pp.16.01765] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2016] [Accepted: 02/15/2017] [Indexed: 05/18/2023]
Abstract
Germ cells are indispensable carriers of genetic information from one generation to the next. In contrast to the well-understood process in animals, information on the mechanism of germ cell initiation in plants is very limited. SPOROCYTELESS/NOZZLE was previously identified as an essential regulator of diploid germ cell (archesporial cell) differentiation in the stamens and ovules of Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). Although SPOROCYTELESS (SPL) transcription is activated by the floral organ identity regulator AGAMOUS and epigenetically regulated by SET DOMAIN GROUP2, little is known about the regulation of the SPL protein. Here, we report that the protein kinases MPK3 and MPK6 can both interact with SPL in vitro and in vivo and can phosphorylate the SPL protein in vitro. In addition, phosphorylation of the SPL protein by MPK3/6 is required for SPL function in the Arabidopsis anther, as measured by its effect on archesporial cell differentiation. We further demonstrate that phosphorylation enhances SPL protein stability. This work not only uncovers the importance of SPL phosphorylation for its regulatory role in Arabidopsis anther development, but also supports the hypothesis that the regulation of precise spatiotemporal patterning of germ cell initiation and that differentiation is achieved progressively through multiple levels of regulation, including transcriptional and posttranslational modification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Feng Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Research, College of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., Y.-F.Z., T.Z., R.S., J.-Y.Y., Z.-H.X., S.-N.B.)
- The National Center of Plant Gene Research, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., S.-N.B.)
- College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100081, China (Y.L., D.-T.R.); and
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering and Collaborative Innovation Center of Genetics and Development, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China (H.M.)
| | - Ya-Feng Zheng
- State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Research, College of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., Y.-F.Z., T.Z., R.S., J.-Y.Y., Z.-H.X., S.-N.B.)
- The National Center of Plant Gene Research, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., S.-N.B.)
- College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100081, China (Y.L., D.-T.R.); and
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering and Collaborative Innovation Center of Genetics and Development, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China (H.M.)
| | - Ting Zeng
- State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Research, College of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., Y.-F.Z., T.Z., R.S., J.-Y.Y., Z.-H.X., S.-N.B.)
- The National Center of Plant Gene Research, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., S.-N.B.)
- College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100081, China (Y.L., D.-T.R.); and
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering and Collaborative Innovation Center of Genetics and Development, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China (H.M.)
| | - Rui Sun
- State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Research, College of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., Y.-F.Z., T.Z., R.S., J.-Y.Y., Z.-H.X., S.-N.B.)
- The National Center of Plant Gene Research, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., S.-N.B.)
- College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100081, China (Y.L., D.-T.R.); and
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering and Collaborative Innovation Center of Genetics and Development, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China (H.M.)
| | - Ji-Yuan Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Research, College of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., Y.-F.Z., T.Z., R.S., J.-Y.Y., Z.-H.X., S.-N.B.)
- The National Center of Plant Gene Research, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., S.-N.B.)
- College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100081, China (Y.L., D.-T.R.); and
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering and Collaborative Innovation Center of Genetics and Development, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China (H.M.)
| | - Yuan Li
- State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Research, College of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., Y.-F.Z., T.Z., R.S., J.-Y.Y., Z.-H.X., S.-N.B.)
- The National Center of Plant Gene Research, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., S.-N.B.)
- College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100081, China (Y.L., D.-T.R.); and
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering and Collaborative Innovation Center of Genetics and Development, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China (H.M.)
| | - Dong-Tao Ren
- State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Research, College of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., Y.-F.Z., T.Z., R.S., J.-Y.Y., Z.-H.X., S.-N.B.)
- The National Center of Plant Gene Research, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., S.-N.B.)
- College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100081, China (Y.L., D.-T.R.); and
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering and Collaborative Innovation Center of Genetics and Development, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China (H.M.)
| | - Hong Ma
- State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Research, College of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., Y.-F.Z., T.Z., R.S., J.-Y.Y., Z.-H.X., S.-N.B.)
- The National Center of Plant Gene Research, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., S.-N.B.)
- College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100081, China (Y.L., D.-T.R.); and
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering and Collaborative Innovation Center of Genetics and Development, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China (H.M.)
| | - Zhi-Hong Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Research, College of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., Y.-F.Z., T.Z., R.S., J.-Y.Y., Z.-H.X., S.-N.B.)
- The National Center of Plant Gene Research, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., S.-N.B.)
- College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100081, China (Y.L., D.-T.R.); and
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering and Collaborative Innovation Center of Genetics and Development, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China (H.M.)
| | - Shu-Nong Bai
- State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Research, College of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., Y.-F.Z., T.Z., R.S., J.-Y.Y., Z.-H.X., S.-N.B.);
- The National Center of Plant Gene Research, Beijing 100871, China (F.Z., S.-N.B.);
- College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100081, China (Y.L., D.-T.R.); and
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering and Collaborative Innovation Center of Genetics and Development, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China (H.M.)
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Fang YH, Li X, Bai SN, Rao GY. Sugar Treatments Can Induce AcLEAFY COTYLEDON1 Expression and Trigger the Accumulation of Storage Products during Prothallus Development of Adiantum capillus-veneris. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2017; 8:541. [PMID: 28484470 PMCID: PMC5399092 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2017.00541] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2017] [Accepted: 03/27/2017] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
A seed is an intricate structure. Of the two development processes involved in seed formation, seed maturation, or seed program includes accumulation of storage products, acquisition of desiccation tolerance, and induction of dormancy. Little is known about how these processes were originated and integrated into the life cycle of seed plants. While previous investigation on seed origin was almost exclusively through fossil comparison in paleobotany, a wealth of information about the key role of LEAFY COTYLEDON1 (LEC1) in seed formation of spermatophyte inspired a new approach to investigating the seed origin mystery. Here, we examined the expression pattern of AcLEC1 during the entire life cycle of Adiantum capillus-veneris, a non-seed plant, confirmed no AcLEC1 gene expression detectable in prothalli, demonstrated inductive expressed by both sucrose and glucose in prothalli. As expected, we found that sugar treatments delayed prothallus development, promoted differentiation of reproductive organs, and triggered accumulation of storage products. These findings demonstrated links between the sugar treatments and the induction of AcLEC1 expression, as well as the sugar treatments and the events such as accumulation of storage products, which is similar to those considered as seed maturation process in seed plants. These links support a modified hypothesis that inductive expression of LEC1 homologs during embryogenesis might be a key innovation for the origin of the seed program.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu-Han Fang
- College of Life Sciences, Peking UniversityBeijing, China
| | - Xia Li
- RDFZ XiShan SchoolBeijing, China
| | - Shu-Nong Bai
- College of Life Sciences, Peking UniversityBeijing, China
- *Correspondence: Shu-Nong Bai,
| | - Guang-Yuan Rao
- College of Life Sciences, Peking UniversityBeijing, China
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Bai SN. Reconsideration of Plant Morphological Traits: From a Structure-Based Perspective to a Function-Based Evolutionary Perspective. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2017; 8:345. [PMID: 28360919 PMCID: PMC5350141 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2017.00345] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2017] [Accepted: 02/27/2017] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
This opinion article proposes a novel alignment of traits in plant morphogenesis from a function-based evolutionary perspective. As a member species of the ecosystem on Earth, we human beings view our neighbor organisms from our own sensing system. We tend to distinguish forms and structures (i.e., "morphological traits") mainly through vision. Traditionally, a plant was considered to be consisted of three parts, i.e., the shoot, the leaves, and the root. Based on such a "structure-based perspective," evolutionary analyses or comparisons across species were made on particular parts or their derived structures. So far no conceptual framework has been established to incorporate the morphological traits of all three land plant phyta, i.e., bryophyta, pteridophyta and spermatophyta, for evolutionary developmental analysis. Using the tenets of the recently proposed concept of sexual reproduction cycle, the major morphological traits of land plants can be aligned into five categories from a function-based evolutionary perspective. From this perspective, and the resulting alignment, a new conceptual framework emerges, called "Plant Morphogenesis 123." This framework views a plant as a colony of integrated plant developmental units that are each produced via one life cycle. This view provided an alternative perspective for evolutionary developmental investigation in plants.
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Neuhof M, Levin M, Rechavi O. Vertically- and horizontally-transmitted memories - the fading boundaries between regeneration and inheritance in planaria. Biol Open 2016; 5:1177-88. [PMID: 27565761 PMCID: PMC5051648 DOI: 10.1242/bio.020149] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The Weismann barrier postulates that genetic information passes only from the germline to the soma and not in reverse, thus providing an obstacle to the inheritance of acquired traits. Certain organisms such as planaria – flatworms that can reproduce through asymmetric fission – avoid the limitations of this barrier, thus blurring the distinction between the processes of inheritance and development. In this paper, we re-evaluate canonical ideas about the interaction between developmental, genetic and evolutionary processes through the lens of planaria. Biased distribution of epigenetic effects in asymmetrically produced parts of a regenerating organism could increase variation and therefore affect the species' evolution. The maintenance and fixing of somatic experiences, encoded via stable biochemical or physiological states, may contribute to evolutionary processes in the absence of classically defined generations. We discuss different mechanisms that could induce asymmetry between the two organisms that eventually develop from the regenerating parts, including one particularly fascinating source – the potential capacity of the brain to produce long-lasting epigenetic changes. Summary: In this hypothesis paper we re-evaluate canonical ideas about the interaction between developmental, genetic and evolutionary processes through the lens of planaria, an invertebrate model organism which challenges fundamental assumptions regarding reproduction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Moran Neuhof
- Department of Neurobiology, Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
| | - Michael Levin
- Allen Discovery Center, Tufts University, 200 Boston Avenue, Suite 4600, Medford, MA 02155, USA
| | - Oded Rechavi
- Department of Neurobiology, Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel Allen Discovery Center, Tufts University, 200 Boston Avenue, Suite 4600, Medford, MA 02155, USA Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
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