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Expression patterns of several floral genes during flower initiation in the apical buds of apple (Malus × domestica Borkh.) revealed by in situ hybridization

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Abstract

The apple (Malus × domestica Borkh.) is one of the commercially important fruit crops in the worldwide. The apple has a relatively long juvenile period (up to 4 years) and a long reproductive period between the flower initiation and the mature fruit (14–16 months), which prevent the fruit breeding. Therefore, the understanding of the flowering system is important to improve breeding efficiency in the apple. In this study, to examine the temporal and spatial expression patterns of the floral genes, MdTFL1, MdAP1 (MdMASD5), AFL2, and MdFT, we conducted in situ hybridization analysis in the apple shoot apex. In vegetative phase, MdTFL1 was expressed on the rib meristem zone. When vegetative meristem began converting into inflorescence meristem, the expression level of MdTFL1 was drastically decreased. At the early stage of inflorescence meristem, the expression levels of AFL2, MdFT, and MdAP1 were up-regulated in the leaf primordia and the upper region of cell layers on the shoot apex. In late stage, the expression levels of AFL2 and MdAP1 were up-regulated in the young floral primordia. At a more advanced stage, high expression of MdAP1 was observed in the inflorescence primordium through the inner layer of sepal primordia and the outer layer of receptacle primordia and floral axis. Our results suggest that AFL2, MdFT, and MdAP1 affect to convert from the vegetative meristem into the inflorescence meristem after the decline of MdTFL1 expression. After that, AFL2 and MdAP1 promote the formation of the floral primordia and floral organs.

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Abbreviations

AP1 :

APETALA1

CEN :

CENTRORADIALIS

FT :

FLOWERING LOCUS T

LFY :

LEAFY

Md :

Malus × domestica

PEBP:

Phosphatidylethanolamine binding protein

RT–PCR:

Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction

SOC1 :

SUPRESSOR OF OVEREXPRESSION OF CONSTANS1

TFL1 :

TERMINAL FLOWER1

UTR:

Untranslational region

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by a grant-in-aid (No. 15208004) from the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture of Japan.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Agriculture, Iwate University, Morioka, Iwate, 020-8550, Japan

    Naozumi Mimida, Narumi Shigeta, Noriko Sato, Akira Suzuki & Sadao Komori

  2. Apple Breeding and Physiology Research Team, Apple Research Station, National Institute of Fruit Tree Science, Morioka, Iwate, 020-0123, Japan

    Ayano Ureshino, Yuki Moriya-Tanaka, Hiroshi Iwanami, Chikako Honda & Masato Wada

  3. Faculty of Agriculture and Life Science, Hirosaki University, Hirosaki, Aomori, 036-8561, Japan

    Norimitsu Tanaka

Authors
  1. Naozumi Mimida
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  2. Ayano Ureshino
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  3. Norimitsu Tanaka
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  4. Narumi Shigeta
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  5. Noriko Sato
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  6. Yuki Moriya-Tanaka
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  7. Hiroshi Iwanami
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  8. Chikako Honda
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  9. Akira Suzuki
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  10. Sadao Komori
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  11. Masato Wada
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Masato Wada.

Additional information

Communicated by F. Sato.

N. Mimida, A. Ureshino, N. Tanaka and N. Shigeta have contributed equally to this work.

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Mimida, N., Ureshino, A., Tanaka, N. et al. Expression patterns of several floral genes during flower initiation in the apical buds of apple (Malus × domestica Borkh.) revealed by in situ hybridization. Plant Cell Rep 30, 1485–1492 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00299-011-1057-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00299-011-1057-3

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