Self-incompatibility (SI) systems are widespread mechanisms that prevent self-fertilization in angiosperms. They are generally encoded by one genome region containing several multiallelic genes, usually called the S-locus. They involve a recognition step between the pollen and the pistil component and pollen is rejected when it shares alleles with the pistil. The direct consequence is that rare...

Plant reproductive transcriptomes have been analyzed in different species due to the agronomical and biotechnological importance of plant reproduction. Here we presented an olive tree reproductive transcriptome database with samples from pollen and pistil at different developmental stages, and leaf and root as control vegetative tissues http://reprolive.eez.csic.es). It was developed from 2,077...

Sexual reproduction in higher plants uses pollination, involving interactions between pollen and pistil. Self-incompatibility (SI) prevents self-fertilization, providing an important mechanism to promote outbreeding. SI is controlled by the S-locus; discrimination occurs between incompatible pollen, which is rejected, while compatible pollen can achieve fertilization. In Papaver rhoeas, S prote...

Independent lines of evidence suggest that members from ancient and polymorphic gene families such as defensins and receptor-like kinases mediate intercellular communication during both the immune response and reproduction. Here, we report a large-scale analysis to investigate the extent of overlap between these processes by comparing differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the pistil transcri...

That sexual selection can be an active force in plant evolution is still under debate. When the number of pollen grains deposited onto a stigma exceeds the number of available ovules, competition among pollen grains for fertilizations will result in selection on traits that increase siring ability (e.g. pollen tube growth rate). The pistil can be regarded as an arena for pollen competition, whe...

The differential expression of the petunia 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate (ACC) oxidase gene family during flower development and senescence was investigated. ACC oxidase catalyzes the conversion of ACC to ethylene. The increase in ethylene production by petunia corollas during senescence was preceded by increased ACC oxidase mRNA and enzyme activity. Treatment of flowers with ethylene led t...

Flowering plants in the reproductive stage are particularly vulnerable to ambient temperature fluctuations. Nevertheless, they maintain seed production under certain levels of exposure to temperature change. The mechanisms underlying this temperature tolerance are largely unknown. Using an in vitro Arabidopsis pollen tube culture, we found that a synthetic CLV3/ESR-related peptide, CLE45, prolo...

Seed set is usually low and differs for different crosses of flower lotus (Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn.). The reasons remain unknown, and this has a negative impact on lotus breeding. To determine the causes, we carried out two crosses of flower lotus, that is, "Jinsenianhua" × "Qinhuaihuadeng" and "Qinhuaihuadeng" × "Jinsenianhua" and pollen viability, pistil receptivity, and embryo development we...

Thermopsis turcica Kit Tan, Vural & Kucukoduk (Fabaceae) is a rare and endemic Turkish species grown around Aksehir Lake and Eber Lake of the southern areas of Central Anatolia. T. turcica has a gynoecium of 2-4 functional carpels. This characteristic of T. turcica is unique in the subfamily Papilioideae of Fabaceae. Although this genotype is valuable as female plants, to date there is no consi...

During compatible pollination of the angiosperms, pollen tubes grow in the pistil transmitting tract (TT) and are guided to the ovule for fertilization. Lily (Lilium longiflorum) stigma/style Cys-rich adhesin (SCA), a plant lipid transfer protein (LTP), is a small, secreted peptide involved in pollen tube adhesion-mediated guidance. Here, we used a reverse genetic approach to study biological r...