The pollen exine,an inert lipid layer,is the outermost layer of the pollen wall and mainly consists of sporopollenin[1,2].Normal exine contributes to male fertility and geometric patterns of pollen grain[[1],[2],[3]]....The pollen exine,an inert lipid layer,is the outermost layer of the pollen wall and mainly consists of sporopollenin[1,2].Normal exine contributes to male fertility and geometric patterns of pollen grain[[1],[2],[3]].Genetic and physicochemical processes control exine formation and genic male sterility(GMS)genes constitute a significant proportion of identified genetic factors[[1],[2],[3],[4]].To date,more than 200 GMS genes have been identified in plants[4,5].The precise molecular mechanisms underlying exine formation rely on genetic networks established by these GMS genes.However,the specific genetic networks underlying the exine formation remain unclear.展开更多
Because of its significance for plant male fertility and,hence,direct impact on crop yield,pollen exine development has inspired decades of scientific inquiry.However,the molecularmechanismunderlying exine formation a...Because of its significance for plant male fertility and,hence,direct impact on crop yield,pollen exine development has inspired decades of scientific inquiry.However,the molecularmechanismunderlying exine formation and thickness remains elusive.In this study,we identified that a previously unrecognized repressor,ZmMS1/ZmLBD30,controls proper pollen exine development in maize.Using an ms1 mutant with aberrantly thickened exine,we cloned a male-sterility gene,ZmMs1,which encodes a tapetum-specific lateral organ boundary domain transcription factor,ZmLBD30.Weshowed thatZmMs1/ZmLBD30 is initially turned on by a transcriptional activation cascade of ZmbHLH51-ZmMYB84-ZmMS7,and then it serves as a repressor to shut down this cascade via feedback repression to ensure timely tapetal degeneration and proper level of exine.This activation-feedback repression loop regulating male fertility is conserved in maize and sorghum,and similar regulatory mechanism may also exist in other flowering plants such as rice and Arabidopsis.Collectively,these findings reveal a novel regulatory mechanism of pollen exine development by which a long-sought master repressor of upstream activators prevents excessive exine formation.展开更多
基金supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China(2022YFF1003501 and 2023ZD04076)the National Natural Science Foundation of China(32330076 and 32301886)the Beijing Innovation Consortium of Agriculture Research System(BAIC02-2024).
文摘The pollen exine,an inert lipid layer,is the outermost layer of the pollen wall and mainly consists of sporopollenin[1,2].Normal exine contributes to male fertility and geometric patterns of pollen grain[[1],[2],[3]].Genetic and physicochemical processes control exine formation and genic male sterility(GMS)genes constitute a significant proportion of identified genetic factors[[1],[2],[3],[4]].To date,more than 200 GMS genes have been identified in plants[4,5].The precise molecular mechanisms underlying exine formation rely on genetic networks established by these GMS genes.However,the specific genetic networks underlying the exine formation remain unclear.
基金supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China(2022YFF1003500 to X.Wan,2022YFF1002400 and 2021YFF1000302 to S.W.,and 2022YFF1100501 to X.Wei)the National Natural Science Foundation of China(31771875 to X.Wan,31900610 to Q.H.31971958 to X.A.,and 31871702 to S.W.)+1 种基金the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities of China(06500136 to X.Wan)the Beijing Nova Program(Z201100006820114 to Q.H.).
文摘Because of its significance for plant male fertility and,hence,direct impact on crop yield,pollen exine development has inspired decades of scientific inquiry.However,the molecularmechanismunderlying exine formation and thickness remains elusive.In this study,we identified that a previously unrecognized repressor,ZmMS1/ZmLBD30,controls proper pollen exine development in maize.Using an ms1 mutant with aberrantly thickened exine,we cloned a male-sterility gene,ZmMs1,which encodes a tapetum-specific lateral organ boundary domain transcription factor,ZmLBD30.Weshowed thatZmMs1/ZmLBD30 is initially turned on by a transcriptional activation cascade of ZmbHLH51-ZmMYB84-ZmMS7,and then it serves as a repressor to shut down this cascade via feedback repression to ensure timely tapetal degeneration and proper level of exine.This activation-feedback repression loop regulating male fertility is conserved in maize and sorghum,and similar regulatory mechanism may also exist in other flowering plants such as rice and Arabidopsis.Collectively,these findings reveal a novel regulatory mechanism of pollen exine development by which a long-sought master repressor of upstream activators prevents excessive exine formation.
