Arabinogalactan proteins may facilitate the movement of pollen tubes from the stigma to the ovules in Actinidia deliciosa and Amaranthus hypochondriacus

Sexual plant reproduction is a complex process that involves a series of interactions between the male gametophyte and the different cell types of the pistil. These interactions are believed to direct the pollen tube growth until its final target, the embryo sac. Arabinogalactan proteins are complex proteoglycans that are believed to be involved in these processes. The pistil is enriched in these highly glycosylated proteins and we provide results that show the selective presence of different AGP epitopes at the surface of the cells or in the ECM of the tissues that correspond exactly to the pollen tube growth pathway in Amaranthus hypochondriacus and Actinidia deliciosa. We also show that in Actinidia deliciosa, which is a dioecious plant with the male flowers having rudimentary ovaries where fertilization does not occur, there is no presence at all of the epitopes recognised by the monoclonal antibodies utilized in this study.