Abstract
In this study, we report the role of exogenous and endogenous cytokinins on growth and sexual organ development in the fern Blechnum spicant L. Spore-derived gametophytes (SG) were cultured in full-strength Murashige and Skoog (1962) liquid medium supplemented with (a) 4.44 μMN6-benzyladenine (BAP), (b) a crude extract from mature female gametophytes, and (c) 4.44 μM BAP in combination with the crude extract from mature gametophytes, respectively. Both BAP and the crude extract delayed the gametophyte development, and this effect was increased when they were added together. With respect to sexual organ development, BAP inhibited the sexual organ formation, while the crude extract favored antheridia formation; however, when added together, the percentage of antheridia decreased. The endogenous level of the cytokinins cis-zeatin (cZ), cis-zeatin-riboside (cZR), dihydrozeatin (DHZ), dihydrozeatin riboside (DHZR), isopentenyl adenine (iP), isopentenyl adenosine (iPR), isopentenyl-9-glucoside (iP9G), trans-zeatin (tZ), and trans-zeatin riboside (tZR) were analyzed in female and male gametophytes of B. spicant L. The endogenous levels of cytokinins tZ, cZ, DHZ, cZR, iP, and iPR were higher in female gametophytes than in male gametophytes, with the endogenous iP and iPR content being increased more than 300 and 400 times, respectively.
Similar content being viewed by others
Abbreviations
- BAP:
-
N6-benzyladenine
- cZ:
-
cis-zeatin
- cZR:
-
cis-zeatin riboside
- DHZ:
-
Dihydrozeatin
- DHZR:
-
Dihydrozeatin riboside
- HG:
-
Gametophytes regenerated from homogenized mature gametophytes
- HPLC-MS/MS:
-
High-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry
- iP:
-
Isopentenyladenine
- iP9G:
-
Isopentenyl adenine-9-glucoside
- iPR:
-
Isopentenyladenosine
- MS:
-
Murashige and Skoog nutrient medium (1962)
- SG:
-
Spore-derived gametophytes
- tZ:
-
trans-zeatin
- tZR:
-
trans-zeatin riboside
References
Banks JA (1994) Sex-determining genes in the homosporous fern Ceratopteris. Development 120:1949–1958
Bieleski WJ (1964) The problem of halting enzyme action when extracting plant tissues. Ann Biochem 9:431–442. doi:10.1016/0003-2697(64)90204-0
Chailkyan MKh, Khryanin VN (1987) Sexuality in plants and its hormonal regulation. Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg
Cousens MI (1979) Gametophytic ontogeny, sex expression and genetic load as measures of population divergence in Blechnum spicant. Am J Bot 66:116–132. doi:10.2307/2442514
Dekock N, Theron KI, Swart P, Weiler EW, Bellstedt DU (1994) Cytokinins in the xylem sap of the dioecious fynbos shrub Leucandendrom rubrum (Burm) F. Seasonal fluctuations and their possible interaction with morphological characteristics as expressed in the 2 sexes. New Phytol 127:749–759. doi:10.1111/j.1469-8137.1994.tb02979.x
Döpp W (1950) Eine die Antheridienbildung bei farnen fördernde substanz in dem prothallien von Pteridium aquilinum (L.). Kuhn Ver Deut Bot Ges 63:139–147
Duran R, Duran B (1984) Sexual differentiation in higher plants. Physiol Plant 60:2167–2174
Duran R, Duran B (1990) Sexual determination and sexual differentiation. Crit Rev Plant Sci 9:295–316
Fernández H, Bertrand AM, Sánchez-Tamés R (1993) In vitro regeneration of Asplenium nidus L from gametophytic and sporophytic tissue. Sci Hortic (Amsterdam) 56:71–77. doi:10.1016/0304-4238(93)90103-W
Fernández H, Bertrand AM, Sánchez-Tamés R (1997) Gametophyte culture and antheridiogen activity in Blechnum spicant L. Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult 50:71–74. doi:10.1023/A:1005962726905
Khryanin VN (2002) Role of phytohormones in sex differentiation in plants. Russ J Plant Physiol 49:545–551. doi:10.1023/A:1016328513153
Klekowski EJ Jr (1969) Reproductive biology of the Pteridophyta. II. Theoretical considerations. J Linn Soc Bot 62:347–359. doi:10.1111/j.1095-8339.1969.tb01972.x
Korpelainen H (1998) Labile sex expression in plants. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 73:157–180. doi:10.1017/S0006323197005148
Menéndez V, Revilla MA, Fernández H (2006a) Growth and gender in the gametophyte of Blechnum spicant L. Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult 86:47–53. doi:10.1007/s11240-006-9095-1
Menéndez V, Revilla MA, Bernard P, Gotor V, Fernández H (2006b) Gibberellins and antheridiogen on sex in Blechnum spicant L. Plant Cell Rep 25:1104–1110. doi:10.1007/s00299-006-0149-y
Murashige T, Skoog F (1962) A revised medium for rapid growth and bio-assays with tobacco tissue cultures. Physiol Plant 15:473–497. doi:10.1111/j.1399-3054.1962.tb08052.x
Näf U (1966) On dark-germination and antheridium formation in Anemia phyllitidis. Physiol Plant 19:1079–1088. doi:10.1111/j.1399-3054.1966.tb07099.x
Pineda Rodó A, Brugier N, Vankova R, Malbeck J, Olson JM, Haine SC, Martin RC, Habben JE, Mok DW, Mok MC (2008) Over-expression of a zeatin O-glucosylation gene in maize leads to growth retardation and tassels seeds formation. J Exp Bot 59:2673–2686. doi:10.1093/jxb/ern137
Tanurdzic M, Banks JA (2004) Sex-determinating mechanism in land plants. Plant Cell 16:S61–S71. doi:10.1105/tpc.016667
Yamane H (1998) Fern antheridiogens. Int Rev Cytol 184:1–32. doi:10.1016/S0074-7696(08)62177-4
Yang Z, Aidi El J, Ait-Ali T, Augur C, Teller G, Schoentgen F, Durand R, Duran B (1998) Sex-specific marker and trans-zeatin ribosidase in female annual Mercury. Plant Sci 139:93–103. doi:10.1016/S0168-9452(98)00146-0
Acknowledgments
The authors thank the National Scientific Program Ramon and Cajal of the Science and Technologies Ministry and FICYT for supporting this research. They are also grateful to the Government Principado of Asturias, founder of PCTI 2006–2009.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Menéndez, V., Revilla, M.A., Fal, M.A. et al. The effect of cytokinins on growth and sexual organ development in the gametophyte of Blechnum spicant L.. Plant Cell Tiss Organ Cult 96, 245–250 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11240-008-9481-y
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11240-008-9481-y