Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) epidermal seed coat cells follow a complex developmental program where, following fertilization, cells of the ovule outer integument differentiate into a unique cell type. Two hallmarks of these cells are the production of a doughnut-shaped apoplastic pocket filled with pectinaceous mucilage and the columella, a thick secondary cell wall. Cellulose is thought ...

Based on analyses of terpenoids, nrDNA and trnC-D SNPs as well as morphology and ecology, a new cryptic species, Juniperus maritima, from the Puget Sound region is recognized. The species, previously included in J. scopulorum, is characterized by having seed cones that mature in one year (14-16 months), seeds usually exserted from the cone, obtuse scale leaf tips, usually reniform seed cones, s...

Maternal influences on progeny characters affect phenotypic correlations between characters expressed in maternal and progeny generations and consequently influence evolutionary responses to selection. Net selection on maternally influenced characters depends on selection both on the progeny character and on the maternal characters that influence it. I used seed dispersal in Cakile edentula as ...

Stearoyl-acyl carrier protein desaturase (SACPD-C) has been reported to control the accumulation of seed stearic acid; however, no study has previously reported its involvement in leaf stearic acid content and impact on leaf structure and morphology. A subset of an ethyl methanesulfonate mutagenized population of soybean (Glycine max) 'Forrest' was screened to identify mutants within the GmSACP...

Shape-selected synthesis of a large number of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoand microstructures was achieved by the seed-mediated growth of oligoaniline-coated gold nanoparticle precursors. Distinctive ZnO structures such as nanoplates, nanospheres, microstars, microflowers, microthorns and micromultipods were synthesized by this method. Slightly different shapes were obtained in the absence of the seed...

Seed size and cotyledon morphology are two key juvenile traits that have evolved in response to changes in plant species life-history strategies and habitat associations. Correlations of these traits with each other and with other juvenile traits were examined for 70 species of trees and shrubs in Kibale National Park, Uganda. Although species with photosynthetic cotyledons were more abundant t...

Stearoyl-acyl carrier protein desaturase (SACPD-C) has been reported to control the accumulation of seed stearic acid; however, no study has previously reported its involvement in leaf stearic acid content and impact on leaf structure and morphology. A subset of an ethyl methanesulfonate mutagenized population of soybean (Glycine max) ‘Forrest’was screened to identify mutants within the GmSACPD...