Starch granules (SGs) exhibit different morphologies depending on the plant species, especially in endosperm of Poaceae family. Endosperm phenotyping can be used to classify genotypes based SG morphotype using scanning electron microscopic (SEM) analysis. SGs visualized SEM by slicing through kernel (pericarp, aleurone layers, and endosperm) exposing organellar contents. Current methods require...

Seed of a Mexican semidwarf wheat (Triticum aestivum L. cv. Inia 66), was obtained from a nitrogen fertilizer field trial grown in Mexico. A high positive correlation was obtained between seed protein content and seedling dry weight after 3 weeks growth (r = +0.92(**)). The seedling dry weight was positively related to the protein content of the aleurone layer and endosperm, but not to the embr...

Cereal endosperm represents 60% of the calories consumed by human beings worldwide. In addition, cereals also serve as the primary feedstock for livestock. However, the regulatory mechanism of cereal endosperm and seed development is largely unknown. Polycomb complex has been shown to play a key role in the regulation of endosperm development in Arabidopsis, but its role in cereal endosperm dev...

Seed development in flowering plants is a paradigm for the coordination of different tissues during organ growth. It requires a tight interplay between the two typically sexually produced structures: the embryo, developing from the fertilized egg cell, and the endosperm, originating from a fertilized central cell, along with the surrounding maternal tissues. Little is known about the presumptiv...

The opaque2 (o2) mutation increases the Lys content of maize (Zea mays) endosperm by reducing the synthesis of zein storage proteins and increasing the accumulation of other types of cellular proteins. Elongation factor 1A (eEF1A) is one of these proteins, and its concentration is highly correlated with the amount of other Lys-containing proteins in the endosperm. We investigated the basis for ...

Among 38 reciprocal translocations between the maize B chromosome and the proximal region of the long arm of chromosome 10 were six interchanges associated with reduced endosperm development. These six have breakpoints that are the most proximal of the set and constitute a graded series with those broken nearer the centromere which have the most abnormal phenotypes. The group of six defines thr...

Tissue distribution and activity of enzymes involved in sucrose and hexose metabolism were examined in kernels of two inbreds of maize (Zea mays L.) at progressive stages of development. Levels of sugars and starch were also quantitated throughout development. Enzyme activities studied were: ATP-linked fructokinase, UTP-linked fructokinase, ATP-linked glucokinase, sucrose synthase, UDP-Glc pyro...

Either 5-[3H]indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) or 5-[3H]indole-3-acetyl-myo-inositol was applied to the endosperm of kernels of dark-grown Zea mays seedlings. The distribution of total radioactivity, radiolabeled indole-3-acetic acid, and radiolabeled ester conjugated indole-3-acetic acid, in the shoots was then determined. Differences were found in the distribution and chemical form of the radiolab...

Wheat is a major source of protein in the diets of humans and livestock but we know little about the mechanisms that determine the patterns of protein synthesis in the developing endosperm. We have used a combination of enrichment with (15) N glutamine and NanoSIMS imaging to establish that the substrate required for protein synthesis is transported radially from its point of entrance in the en...

NAKED ENDOSPERM1 (NKD1) and NKD2 are duplicate INDETERMINATE DOMAIN (IDD) transcription factors important for maize (Zea mays) endosperm development. RNA-seq analysis of the nkd1 nkd2 mutant endosperm revealed that NKD1 and NKD2 influence 6.4% of the transcriptome in developing aleurone and 6.7% in starchy endosperm. Processes regulated by NKD1 and NKD2 include gene expression, epigenetic funct...