Specific morphological and biochemical characteristics of seeds can cause oxygen deficiency within maternal and embryonic tissues. In this study, optical sensors were used to measure O(2) profiles across developing seeds of Vicia faba and Pisum sativum and developmental and environmental modulations of internal O(2) levels were studied. In addition, the metabolic state of developing embryos was...

Seed development includes an early stage of endosperm proliferation and a late stage of embryo growth at the expense of the endosperm in Arabidopsis thaliana. Abscisic acid (ABA) has known functions during late seed development, but its roles in early seed development remain elusive. In this study, we report that ABA-deficient mutants produced seeds with increased size, mass, and embryo cell nu...

At least two kinds of lipid vesicles are present in pea and bean cotyledons which can be recognized at seed maturity on the basis of whether they do or do not interassociate into lipid vesicle sheets . Those that do interassociate into sheets are also characterized by (a) their association with plastids or plasma membranes during dormancy, and (b) the unique transformation into flattened saccul...

Mineral uptake by soybean (Glycine max [L.] Merrill) seeds during development can significantly affect seed quality and value. Little is known about seed mineral transport mechanisms and control processes, although it is clear that each mineral displays a characteristic accumulation pattern. Ion-specific accumulation patterns could result from changes in source availability, in transport kineti...

Seeds play an integral role in the global food supply and account for more than 70% of the calories that we consume on a daily basis. To meet the demands of an increasing population, scientists are turning to seed genomics research to find new and innovative ways to increase food production. Seed genomics is evolving rapidly, and the information produced from seed genomics research has exploded...

Cytoskeletal remodeling has a fundamental role, especially during transitional developmental stages when cells rapidly adopt new forms and roles, like gametogenesis, fertilization and concomitant embryogenesis and seed formation. KATANIN 1, a microtubule severing protein, fulfills a major regulatory mechanism of dynamic microtubule turnover in eukaryotes. Herein, we show that three well-establi...

Phytic acid (myo-inositol-1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6-hexakisphosphate or Ins P(6)) typically represents approximately 75% to 80% of maize (Zea mays) seed total P. Here we describe the origin, inheritance, and seed phenotype of two non-lethal maize low phytic acid mutants, lpa1-1 and lpa2-1. The loci map to two sites on chromosome 1S. Seed phytic acid P is reduced in these mutants by 50% to 66% but seed t...

Vacuolar processing enzyme (VPE) is a Cys proteinase responsible for the maturation of vacuolar proteins. Arabidopsis thaliana deltaVPE, which was recently found in the database, was specifically and transiently expressed in two cell layers of the seed coat (ii2 and ii3) at an early stage of seed development. At this stage, cell death accompanying cell shrinkage occurs in the ii2 layer followed...

Hydrophobic protein from soybean (HPS) is present in soybean dust and is an allergen (Gly m 1) that causes asthma in allergic individuals. Past studies have shown that HPS occurs on the seed surface. To determine the microscopic localization of HPS during seed development, monoclonal antibodies to HPS were used to visualize the protein by fluorescence and transmission electron microscopy. Seed ...

Phomopsis longicolla is the primary cause of Phomopsis seed decay in soybean. This disease severely affects soybean seed quality by reducing seed viability and oil content, altering seed composition, and increasing frequencies of moldy and/or split beans. It is one of the most economically important soybean diseases. Here, we report the de novo assembled draft genome sequence of the P. longicol...