Pollen-pistil interactions and the endomembrane system

The endomembrane system offers many potential points where plant mating can be effectively controlled. This results from two basic features of angiosperm reproduction: the requirement for pollen tubes to pass through sporophytic tissues to gain access to ovules and the physiology of pollen tube growth that provides it with the capacity to do so. Rapid pollen tube growth requires extravagant exocytosis and endocytosis activity as cell wall material is deposited and membrane is recovered from the actively growing tip. Moreover, recent results show that pollen tubes take up a great deal of material from the pistil extracellular matrix. Regarding the stigma and style as organs specialized for mate selection focuses attention on their complementary roles in secreting material to support the growth of compatible pollen tubes and discourage the growth of undesirable pollen. Since these processes also involve regulated activities of the endomembrane system, the potential for regulating mating by controlling endomembrane events exists in both pollen and pistil.