Journal
DEVELOPMENTAL CELL
Volume 25, Issue 3, Pages 317-323Publisher
CELL PRESS
DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2013.03.013
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Funding
- Global Center of Excellence program (Nagoya University)
- Japan Society for the Promotion of Science [6526, 9138, 5834, 7811]
- Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan [18075004, 19370017]
- Japan Science and Technology Agency (PRESTO project)
- Yamada Science Foundation
- Mitsubishi Foundation
- Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research [19370017, 18075004] Funding Source: KAKEN
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In flowering plants, double fertilization is normally accomplished by the first pollen tube, with the fertilized ovule subsequently inhibiting the attraction of a second pollen tube. However, the mechanism of second-pollen-tube avoidance remains unknown. We discovered that failure to fertilize either the egg cell or the central cell compromised second-pollen-tube avoidance in Arabidopsis thaliana. A similar disturbance was caused by disrupting the fertilization-independent seed (FIS) class polycomb-repressive complex 2 (FIS-PRC2), a central cell- and endosperm-specific chromatin-modifying complex for gene silencing. Therefore, the two female gametes have evolved their own signaling pathways. Intriguingly, second-pollen-tube attraction induced by half-successful fertilization allowed the ovules to complete double fertilization, producing a genetically distinct embryo and endosperm. We thus propose that each female gamete independently determines second-pollen-tube avoidance to maximize reproductive fitness in flowering plants.
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