ibclogo XVI International Botanical Congess


Abstract Number: 2809
Poster No. = 1666


PROGRAMMED CELL DEATH OF PINUS NUCELLUS IN RESPONSE TO POLLEN TUBE PENETRATION


Rie Hiratsuka*, Yohko Yamada# and Osamu Terasaka* *Dept of Biology, Jikei Univ School of Medicine and #Faculty of Science, Japan WomenÕs University


In ovules of P. densiflora, nucellus cells that lie along the route of pollen tube growth toward the female gametophyte become deformed and die. In this study, following pollination, nuclei of the nucellus cells around the pollen tube were stained by the TUNEL method. No TUNEL-positive cells were found in the ovule prior to pollination. The plasma membrane of dying nucellus cells became separated from the cell wall and the protoplast shrunk. In the shrunken protoplast, vacuoles were collapsed and degradation of chromatin, plastids and mitochondria was noted. Agarose gel analysis of DNA isolation from the ovule revealed DNA ladders. These results suggest that the Pinus nucellus cell die by programmed cell death associated with pollen tube growth.


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