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Development of basal endosperm transfer cells in Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench and its relationship with caryopsis growth

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Abstract

During sorghum caryopsis development, endosperm epidermal cells near the basal main vascular bundle are specialized by depositing wall ingrowths, differentiating into basal endosperm transfer cells (BETCs). All the BETCs together compose the basal endosperm transfer layer (BETL). BETCs are the first cell type to become histologically differentiated during endosperm development. The initiation and subsequent development of BETCs shows the pattern of temporal and spatial gradient. The developmental process of BETL can be divided into four stages: initiation, differentiation, functional, and apoptosis stage. A placental sac full of nutrient solutions would emerge, enlarge, and eventually disappear between the outmost layer of BETL and nucellar cells during caryopsis development. BETCs have dense cytoplasm rich in mitochondria, lamellar rough endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi bodies, and their secretory vesicles. They show a series of typical characteristics of senescence such as nuclei distortion and subcellular organelle deterioration during their specialization. BETCs probably play an active role in nutrient transfer into the starchy endosperm and embryo. The occurrence, development, and apoptosis of BETCs are in close relation to the caryopsis growth and maturation especially the enrichment of endosperm and the growth of embryo. The timing when BETL is fully developed, composed of three to four layers in radial direction and 70 to 80 rows in tangential direction, consists with the timing when average daily gain of caryopsis dry weight reaches its maximum. It is conceivable that measures that delay the senescence and death of BETCs would help to increase the crop yield.

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Abbreviations

ADG:

Average daily gain

BETC:

Basal endosperm transfer cell

BETL:

Basal endosperm transfer layer

AA:

After anthesis

ER:

Endoplasmic reticulum

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Acknowledgments

The generous gift of sorghum seeds from Prof. Shu-Zhu Tang is gratefully acknowledged. The authors thank Wei-Dong Zhou, Yi-Fang Chen, and Qing-Li Huang for their excellent technical assistance and the use of the electron microscope facilities at the testing center of Yangzhou University. They also thank Prof. Cun-Xu Wei for the helpful discussion and critical reading of the manuscript. This work is supported jointly by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant no. 30670125) and the Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Higher Education of China (grant no. 20093250110004) to Prof. Zhong Wang, together with the Scientific Research Innovation Program for Graduate Students of Jiangsu Province (grant no. CX08B_026Z) to doctoral candidate Hui-Hui Wang.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Physiology of Jiangsu Province/Key Laboratory of Crop Physiology, Ecology and Cultivation in Middle and Lower Reaches of Yangtse River of Ministry of Agriculture, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, Jiangsu, 225009, China

    Hui-Hui Wang, Zhong Wang, Feng Wang, Yun-Jie Gu & Zhi Liu

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  1. Hui-Hui Wang
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  2. Zhong Wang
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  3. Feng Wang
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  4. Yun-Jie Gu
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Correspondence to Zhong Wang.

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Handling Editor: Marisa Otegui

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Wang, HH., Wang, Z., Wang, F. et al. Development of basal endosperm transfer cells in Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench and its relationship with caryopsis growth. Protoplasma 249, 309–321 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00709-011-0281-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00709-011-0281-6

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