Journal
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
Volume 23, Issue 21, Pages -Publisher
MDPI
DOI: 10.3390/ijms232112966
Keywords
Betula pendula; tetraploid; leaf morphology; growth polarity; leaf size; cell expansion
Funding
- National Key R&D Program of China [2021YFD2200105]
- Heilongjiang Touyan Innovation Team Program
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The study found significant changes in leaf morphology in tetraploid birches, especially the basal part of the leaf. The leaf area of tetraploid birches was significantly larger than that of diploid birches, mainly due to differences in their growth rates. Increased cell expansion capacity was the major reason for the giant leaves of tetraploid birches.
Plant polyploidization changes its leaf morphology and leaf development patterns. Understanding changes in leaf morphology and development patterns is a prerequisite and key to studying leaf development in polyploid plants. In this study, we quantified and analyzed the differences in leaf morphology, leaf growth polarity, and leaf size between diploid and tetraploid birches (Betula pendula subsp. pendula), and preliminarily investigated genes involved in leaf growth and development in birch. The results showed significant changes in leaf morphology in tetraploid birches, especially the basal part of the leaf. In addition, the proximal growth rate of tetraploid leaves was altered. The changed proximal growth rate did not affect the growth polarity pattern of tetraploid leaves. The leaf area of tetraploid was significantly larger than that of diploid birch. The difference in leaf size was mainly due to differences in their growth rates in the middle and late stages of leaf development. Increased cell expansion capacity was the major reason for the enormous leaves of tetraploid birch; however, cell proliferation did not contribute to the larger tetraploid leaf. The gene expression of ATHB12 was associated with cell size and leaf area, and may be a critical gene affecting the leaf size in diploid and tetraploid birches. The results will provide valuable insights into plant polyploid leaf development and a theoretical basis for later investigations into the molecular mechanisms underlying the gigantism of tetraploid birch leaves.
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