scholarly journals A Morphological and Histological Characterization of Bisexual and Male Flower Types in Pomegranate

2011 ◽  
Vol 136 (2) ◽  
pp. 83-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hazel Y. Wetzstein ◽  
Nadav Ravid ◽  
Erik Wilkins ◽  
Adriana Pinheiro Martinelli

Pomegranate [Punica granatum (Punicaceae)] is characterized by having two types of flowers on the same tree: hermaphroditic bisexual flowers and functionally male flowers. This condition, defined as functional andromonoecy, can result in decreased yields resulting from the inability of male flowers to set fruit. Morphological and histological analyses of bisexual and male flowers were conducted using light and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) to characterize the different flower types observed in pomegranate plants and to better understand their developmental differences. Bisexual flowers had a discoid stigma covered with copious exudate, elongated stigmatic papillae, a single elongate style, and numerous stamens inserted on the inner wall of the calyx tube. Using fluorescence staining, high numbers of pollen tubes were observed growing through a central stylar canal. Ovules were numerous, elliptical, and anatropous. In contrast, male flowers had reduced female parts and exhibited shortened pistils of variable heights. Stigmatic papillae of male flowers had little exudate yet supported pollen germination. However, pollen tubes were rarely observed in styles. Ovules in male flowers were rudimentary and exhibited various stages of degeneration. Pollen from both types of flowers was of similar size, ≈20 μm, and exhibited similar percent germination using in vitro germination assays. Pollen germination was strongly influenced by temperature. Maximal germination (greater than 74%) was obtained at 25 and 35 °C; pollen germination was significantly lower at 15 °C (58%) and 5 °C (10%).

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Biying Dong ◽  
Qing Yang ◽  
Zhihua Song ◽  
Lili Niu ◽  
Hongyan Cao ◽  
...  

AbstractMature pollen germinates rapidly on the stigma, extending its pollen tube to deliver sperm cells to the ovule for fertilization. The success of this process is an important factor that limits output. The flavonoid content increased significantly during pollen germination and pollen tube growth, which suggests it may play an important role in these processes. However, the specific mechanism of this involvement has been little researched. Our previous research found that hyperoside can prolong the flowering period of Abelmoschus esculentus (okra), but its specific mechanism is still unclear. Therefore, in this study, we focused on the effect of hyperoside in regulating the actin-depolymerizing factor (ADF), which further affects the germination and growth of pollen. We found that hyperoside can prolong the effective pollination period of okra by 2–3-fold and promote the growth of pollen tubes in the style. Then, we used Nicotiana benthamiana cells as a research system and found that hyperoside accelerates the depolymerization of intercellular microfilaments. Hyperoside can promote pollen germination and pollen tube elongation in vitro. Moreover, AeADF1 was identified out of all AeADF genes as being highly expressed in pollen tubes in response to hyperoside. In addition, hyperoside promoted AeADF1-mediated microfilament dissipation according to microfilament severing experiments in vitro. In the pollen tube, the gene expression of AeADF1 was reduced to 1/5 by oligonucleotide transfection. The decrease in the expression level of AeADF1 partially reduced the promoting effect of hyperoside on pollen germination and pollen tube growth. This research provides new research directions for flavonoids in reproductive development.


2000 ◽  
Vol 125 (2) ◽  
pp. 265-270 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.M.S. Nyomora ◽  
P.H. Brown ◽  
K. Pinney ◽  
V.S. Polito

The effect of boron (B) on in vivo and in vitro development of almond [Prunus dulcis (Mill.) D.A. Webb (syn. P. amygdalus Batsch)] pollen and pollen tubes and the resultant effect on fruit set was studied in mature trees. The cultivars Mono (pistil donor) and Butte (pollinizer) in an orchard with low soil B in Fresno, California were sprayed with B at 0, 0.8, 1.7, or 2.5 kg·ha-1 during Fall 1993. Pollen viability as indicated by the fluorescein diacetate method (FDA) was >85% and was not affected by field-applied B, however, in vivo pollen germination and tube growth were enhanced by foliar-applied B. More effect of applied B on in vivo growth appeared as pollen tubes progressed toward the ovary. For in vitro germination, foliar-applied B reduced bursting of tubes, and addition of B to the culture media significantly increased pollen germination and pollen tube growth.


1961 ◽  
Vol 41 (4) ◽  
pp. 740-743 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. W. Eaton

Effects of fungicidal concentrations of sulphur, dichlone, ferbam, and captan on sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) pollen germination and growth were studied in artificial media. Sulphur did not reduce the germination of pollen. Dichlone and ferbam reduced germination from 53.0 per cent to 47.1 per cent and 40 per cent, respectively, reductions which were significant statistically. Sprayed at 0.2 pound/100 gallons or less, captan did not reduce germination. Captan, sprayed at 2 pounds/100 gallons, almost entirely prevented pollen germination, and arrested the elongation of pollen tubes.


Antibiotics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 1504
Author(s):  
Abdul Rafey ◽  
Adnan Amin ◽  
Muhammad Kamran ◽  
Uzma Haroon ◽  
Kainat Farooq ◽  
...  

The pervasiveness of oral bacterial infections in diabetic patients is a serious health concern that may produce severe complications. We investigated 26 Ayurvedic medicinal plants traditionally used for treatment of the oral bacterial infections with the aim to look for new promising drug leads that can be further employed for herbal formulation design. The plants were grouped into three categories based on traditional usage. All plant extracts were examined for antibacterial, antibiofilm and antiquorum-sensing properties. The plants with significant activities including Juglans regia, Syzygium aromaticum, Eruca sativa, Myristica fragrans, Punica granatum and Azadirachta indica were further analyzed using HPLC-DAD-QToF and GC-MS. In silico and in vitro activity was evaluated for selected constituents. Finally, it could be concluded that eugenol and 2-phenylethylisothiocyanate are major contributors towards inhibition of bacterial biofilms and quorum sensing.


1992 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 211-213 ◽  
Author(s):  
Serge Gudin ◽  
Laurence Aréne

Flowers of two cultivars of Rosa hybrida were treated or not with putrescine before being pollinated from 2 to 8 days after anther emasculation. On both cultivars the 10-3 M putrescine treatment extended the effective pollination period, as shown by the best hip formation rates and mean number of seeds per hip. On one cultivar, the 10-5 M putrescine treatment increased fertilization efficiency (more hips obtained). The effect of putrescine was proportionally more important on the cultivar characterized by the highest stigmatic exudate pH. Putrescine also influenced in vitro pollen germination by increasing the length of emitted pollen tubes (10-3 and 10-5 M-putrescine) and the quantity of germinated pollen grains (10-5 M putrescine).


HortScience ◽  
1990 ◽  
Vol 25 (9) ◽  
pp. 1128d-1128
Author(s):  
Douglas D. Archbold ◽  
Thomas R. Hamilton-Kemp ◽  
John H. Loughrin

Volatile compounds, commonly produced by flowers during bloom, have been described as insect attractants. Some of these compounds stimulate Pinus pollen germination in vitro (French et al., 1979, J. Agric. Fd. Chem., 27184-187), suggesting that such compounds may do the same in vivo. Red Delicious apple pollen was germinated on agar in a simple, enclosed in vitro bioassay system in the presence of a number of plant tissues, including apple, tomato, and chrysanthemum leaves, apple flowers, rose petals, and apple fruit slices. These tissues represent a diversity of types of volatile compounds, Pollen germination was recorded by microphotography after 1 and 2 hours, and percent germination was determined. Although stimulation of germination was not observed, macerated tomato leaves inhibited it. To determine if the volatile characteristics of cultivars differ, flowers of Red Delicious and Golden Delicious apple were harvested at full bloom. Their volatiles were collected, identified, and quantitated by capillary GC-MS. Among 8 major compounds common in the two cultivars, several quantitative differences were observed. These results will be discussed in relation to the potential role of volatiles in pollen germination.


Antioxidants ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 238 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diletta Balli ◽  
Lorenzo Cecchi ◽  
Mohamad Khatib ◽  
Maria Bellumori ◽  
Francesco Cairone ◽  
...  

Pomegranate is receiving renewed commercial and scientific interest, therefore a deeper knowledge of the chemical composition of the fruits of less studied varieties is required. In this work, juices from arils and decoctions from mesocarp plus exocarp were prepared from fifteen varieties. Samples were submitted to High Performance Liquid Chromatography—Diode Array Detector–Mass Spectrometry, spectrophotometric and colorimetric CIEL*a*b* analyses. Antioxidant, antiradical and metal chelating properties, inhibitory activity against tyrosinase and α-amylase enzymes were also evaluated. All varieties presented the same main phenols; anthocyanins and ellagitannins were widely variable among varieties, with the richest anthocyanin content in the juices from the Wonderful and Soft Seed Maule varieties (approx. 660 mg/L) and the highest ellagitannin content in the peel of the Black variety (approx. 133 mg/g dry matter). A good correlation was shown between the colour hue and the delphinidin/cyanidin ratio in juices (R2 = 0.885). Total polysaccharide yield ranged from 3% to 12% of the peels’ dry weight, with the highest content in the Black variety. Decoctions (24.44–118.50 mg KAE/g) showed better in vitro antioxidant properties and higher inhibitory capacity against tyrosinase than juices (not active-16.56 mg KAE/g); the inhibitory capacity against α-amylase was similar and quite potent for juices and decoctions. Knowledge about the chemical composition of different pomegranate varieties will allow for a more aware use of the different parts of the fruit.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ferdousse Laggoun ◽  
Nusrat Ali ◽  
Sabine Tourneur ◽  
Grégoire Prudent ◽  
Bruno Gügi ◽  
...  

To date, it is widely accepted by the scientific community that many agricultural regions will experience more extreme temperature fluctuations. These stresses will undoubtedly impact crop production, particularly fruit and seed yields. In fact, pollination is considered as one of the most temperature-sensitive phases of plant development and until now, except for the time-consuming and costly processes of genetic breeding, there is no immediate alternative to address this issue. In this work, we used a multidisciplinary approach using physiological, biochemical, and molecular techniques for studying the effects of two carbohydrate-based natural activators on in vitro tomato pollen germination and pollen tube growth cultured in vitro under cold conditions. Under mild and strong cold temperatures, these two carbohydrate-based compounds significantly enhanced pollen germination and pollen tube growth. The two biostimulants did not induce significant changes in the classical molecular markers implicated in pollen tube growth. Neither the number of callose plugs nor the CALLOSE SYNTHASE genes expression were significantly different between the control and the biostimulated pollen tubes when pollens were cultivated under cold conditions. PECTIN METHYLESTERASE (PME) activities were also similar but a basic PME isoform was not produced or inactive in pollen grown at 8°C. Nevertheless, NADPH oxidase (RBOH) gene expression was correlated with a higher number of viable pollen tubes in biostimulated pollen tubes compared to the control. Our results showed that the two carbohydrate-based products were able to reduce in vitro the effect of cold temperatures on tomato pollen tube growth and at least for one of them to modulate reactive oxygen species production.


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