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Abstract Detail



Development and Structure

Gurung, Vandana [1], Yuan, Yaowu [2], Diggle, Pamela [3].

Comparative analysis of corolla tube development across three closely related Mimulus species with different pollination syndromes .

Fusion of petals to form a corolla tube is considered a key innovation contributing to the diversification of many flowering plant lineages. Corolla tube length often varies dramatically among species and is a major determinant of pollinator preference. However, our understanding of the developmental dynamics underlying corolla tube length variation is very limited. Here we examined corolla tube growth in the Mimulus lewisii species complex, an emerging model system for studying the developmental genetics and evo-devo of pollinator-associated floral traits. We compared developmental and cellular processes associated with corolla tube length variation among the bee-pollinated M. lewisii, the hummingbird-pollinated Mimulus verbenaceus, and the self-pollinated Mimulus parishii. We found that in all three species, cell size is non-uniformly distributed along the mature tube, with the longest cells just distal to the stamen insertion site. Differences in corolla tube length among the three species are not associated with processes of organogenesis or early development but are associated with variation in multiple processes occurring later in development, including the location and duration of cell division and cell elongation. The small-flowered M. parishii has the lowest cell number and undergoes the least cell expansion of the three species. The tube growth curves of the small-flowered M. parishii and large-flowered M. lewisii are essentially indistinguishable, except that M. parishii tubes stop growing earlier at a smaller size, suggesting a critical role of heterochrony in the shift from outcrossing to selfing. The two outcrossing species, M. lewisii and M. verbenaceus, are developmentally different and achieve their final lengths through differences in the rate and duration of growth. These results not only highlight the developmental process associated with corolla tube variation among species but also provide a baseline reference for future developmental genetic analyses of mutants or transgenic plants with altered corolla tube morphology in this emerging model system.


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1 - University Of Connecticut, Department Of Ecology And Evolutionary Biology, 75 N. Eagleville Road, Unit 3043 Storrs,, Storrs, CT, 06269, United States
2 - University Of Connecticut, Ecology And Evolutionary Biology, 75 N. Eagleville Rd., Unit 3043, Storrs, CT, 06269, United States
3 - University Of Connecticut, Department Of Ecology And Evolutionary Biology, Storrs, CT, 6269, United States

Keywords:
Corolla tube
Developmental dynamics
heterochrony
Mimulus
morphology
Cellular processes.

Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: DS1, Development and Structure I
Location: /
Date: Tuesday, July 20th, 2021
Time: 2:15 PM(EDT)
Number: DS1017
Abstract ID:354
Candidate for Awards:Katherine Esau Award


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