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Pityopus californicus: structural characteristics of seed and seedling development in a myco-heterotrophic species

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Abstract

Pityopus californicus (Eastw.) H. F. Copel., a monotypic member of the Monotropoideae in the family Ericaceae, is a myco-heterotrophic species with distribution limited to the Pacific Northwest of the USA. Young embryos of P. californicus developed mycorrhizal associations in seed packets that had been buried for up to 681 days, suggesting that seeds of P. californicus may require the presence of a fungus to achieve germination. Samples of nongerminated seeds and early stages in embryo and root development were subsequently processed for light microscopy, histochemistry, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Nongerminated seeds possessed a thick testa, lacked a shoot and root meristem, and consisted of an embryo with large parenchymatous cells containing protein bodies and starch grains as storage reserves. In the earliest developmental stage (seed coat still attached), fungal hyphae were present on the testa surface and between the testa and embryo. This stage was followed by embryo elongation, the organization of a root apical meristem, and the development of a well-developed fungal mantle surrounding the elongated embryo. At least two morphotypes were identified based on structural characteristics of the mantle. One of these, with ascomycetous septa, had Cenococcum-like features. Late-stage embryo/early root development revealed a typical mantle and Hartig net, with fungal pegs penetrating the outer tangential walls of epidermal cells. Transfer cell-like deposits of wall material, similar to those described in Monotropa spp., enclosed fungal pegs. The development of a Hartig net and fungal pegs suggests that nutrient exchange interfaces are required for seedling development.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Martin Bidartondo for his generosity in supplying the samples used in this study, as well as two anonymous reviewers who contributed valuable insights to the discussion. Financial support was provided by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada to HBM and RLP.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ecosystem Science and Management Program, University of Northern British Columbia, 3333 University Way, Prince George, BC, V2N 4Z9, Canada

    Hugues B. Massicotte & Linda E. Tackaberry

  2. Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada

    Lewis H. Melville & R. Larry Peterson

Authors
  1. Hugues B. Massicotte
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  2. Lewis H. Melville
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  3. Linda E. Tackaberry
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  4. R. Larry Peterson
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Correspondence to Hugues B. Massicotte.

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Massicotte, H.B., Melville, L.H., Tackaberry, L.E. et al. Pityopus californicus: structural characteristics of seed and seedling development in a myco-heterotrophic species. Mycorrhiza 17, 647–653 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00572-007-0142-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00572-007-0142-5

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