Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Why Somatic Plant Cells Start to form Embryos?

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Somatic Embryogenesis

Part of the book series: Plant Cell Monographs ((CELLMONO,volume 2))

Abstract

Embryogenesis in plants is not restricted to the fertilized egg cell but can be naturally or artificially induced in many different cell types, including somatic cells. Although genetic components clearly determine the potential of species/genotypes to form somatic embryos, the expression of embryogenic competence at the cellular level is defined by developmental and physiological cues. Competent cells can respond to a variety of conditions by the initiation of embryogenic development. In general, these conditions include alterations in auxin (exogenous and/or endogenous) levels and evoke stress responses. Recent experimental results in the field of developmental and molecular plant biology emphasize the role of chromatin remodelling in the coordination of overall gene expression patterns associated with developmental switches. It can be hypothesized that the initiation of somatic embryogenesis is a general response to a multitude of parallel signals (including auxin and stress factors). This response includes, in addition to cellular and physiological reorganization, the extended remodelling of the chromatin and a release of the embryogenic programme otherwise blocked in vegetative cells by chromatin-mediated gene silencing. In this review I attempt to give a general overview of experimental results supporting the aforementioned hypothesis, leaving the detailed elaboration of special subjects to other chapters.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Baudino S, Hansen S, Brettschneider R, Hecht VF, Dresselhaus T, Lorz H, Dumas C, Rogowsky PM (2001) Molecular characterisation of two novel maize LRR receptor-like kinases, which belong to the SERK gene family. Planta 213:1–10

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Bicknell RA, Koltunow AM (2004) Understanding apomixis: recent advances and remaining conundrums. Plant Cell 16:228–245

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Bögre L, Stefanov I, Ábrahám M, Somogyi I, Dudits D (1990) Differences in the responses to 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) treatment between embryogenic and non-embryogenic lines of alfalfa. In: Nijkamp HJJ, van der Plaas LHW, Van Aartrijk J (eds) Progress in plant cellular and molecular biology. Kluwer, Dordrecht, pp 427–436

    Google Scholar 

  4. Boutilier K, Offringa R, Sharma VK, Kieft H, Ouellet T, Zhang L, Hattori J, Liu CM, van Lammeren AA, Miki BL, Custers JB, Lookeren Campagne MM (2002) Ectopic expression of BABY BOOM triggers a conversion from vegetative to embryonic growth. Plant Cell 14:1737–1749

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Bowley SR, Kielly GA, Anandarajah K, McKersie BD, Senaratna T (1993) Field-evaluation following 2 cycles of backcross transfer of somatic embryogenesis to commercial alfalfa. Germplasm. Can J Plant Sci 73:131–137

    Google Scholar 

  6. Campanoni P, Nick P (2005) Auxin-dependent cell division and cell elongation. 1-Naphthaleneacetic acid and 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid activate different pathways. Plant Physiol 137:939–948

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Charriére F, Sotta B, Miginiac É, Hahne G (1999) Induction of adventitious or somatic embryos on in vitro cultured zygotic embryos of Helianthus annuus: variation of endogenous hormone levels. Plant Physiol Biochem 37:751–757

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Chaudhury AM, Koltunow A, Payne T, Luo M, Tucker MR, Dennis ES, Peacock WJ (2001) Control of early seed development. Annu Rev Cell Dev Biol 17:677–699

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Chuck G, Hake S (2005) Regulation of developmental transitions. Curr Opin Plant Biol 8:67–70

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Dean Rider S Jr, Henderson JT, Jerome RE, Edenberg HJ, Romero-Severson J, Ogas J (2003) Coordinate repression of regulators of embryonic identity by PICKLE during germination in Arabidopsis. Plant J 35:33–43

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Dudits D, Bögre L, Györgyey J (1991) Molecular and cellular approaches to the analysis of plant embryo development from somatic cells in vitro. J Cell Sci 99:475–484

    Google Scholar 

  12. Fehér A, Pasternak TP, Dudits D (2003) Transition of somatic plant cells to an embryogenic state. Plant Cell Tissue Org Cult 74:201–228

    Google Scholar 

  13. Fehér A, Pasternak TP, Ötvös K, Dudits D (2005) Plant protoplasts: consequences of lost cell walls. In: Murch S, Saxena PK (eds) Journey of a single cell to a plant. Science Publishers Inc., Enfield, NH, USA, pp 59–89

    Google Scholar 

  14. Gallois JL, Nora FR, Mizukami Y, Sablowski R (2004) WUSCHEL induces shoot stem cell activity and developmental plasticity in the root meristem. Genes Dev 18:375–380

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Grimanelli D, Perotti E, Ramirez J, Leblanc O (2005) Timing of the maternal-to-zygotic transition during early seed development in maize. Plant Cell 17:1061–1072

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Grossmann K (1996) A role for cyanide, derived from ethylene biosynthesis, in the development of stress symptoms. Physiol Plant 97:772–775

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Grossmann K (2000) Mode of action of auxinic herbicides: a new ending to a long, drawn out story. Trends Plant Sci 5:506–508

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Grossmann K, Hansen H (2001) Ethylene-triggered abscisic acid: a principle in plant growth regulation? Physiol Plant 113:9–14

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Grossniklaus U, Vielle-Calzada JP, Hoeppner MA, Gagliano WB (1998) Maternal control of embryogenesis by MEDEA, a polycomb group gene in Arabidopsis. Science 280:446–450

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Grossniklaus U, Spillane C, Page DR, Kohler C (2001) Genomic imprinting and seed development: endosperm formation with and without sex. Current Opin Plant Biol 4:21–27

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Györgyey J, Gartner A, Nemeth K, Magyar Z, Hirt H, Heberle-Bors E, Dudits D (1991) Alfalfa heat shock genes are differentially expressed during somatic embryogenesis. Plant Mol Biol 16:999–1007

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Györgyey J, Nemeth K, Magyar Z, Kelemen Z, Alliotte T, Inze D, Dudits D (1997) Expression of a novel-type small proline-rich protein gene of alfalfa is induced by 2,4-dichlorophenoxiacetic acid in dedifferentiated callus cells. Plant Mol Biol 34:593–602

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. Halperin W (1969) Morphogenesis in cell cultures. Annu Rev Plant Physiol 20:395–418

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Hansen H, Grossmann K (2000) Auxin-induced ethylene triggers abscisic acid biosynthesis and growth inhibition. Plant Physiol 124:1437–1448

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  25. Hecht V, Vielle-Calzada JP, Hartog MV, Schmidt ED, Boutilier K, Grossniklaus U, de Vries SC (2001) The Arabidopsis somatic embryogenesis receptor kinase 1 gene is expressed in developing ovules and embryos and enhances embryogenic competence in culture. Plant Physiol 127:803–816

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  26. Henderson JT, Li HC, Rider SD, Mordhorst AP, Romero-Severson J, Cheng JC, Robey J, Sung ZR, de Vries SC, Ogas J (2004) PICKLE acts throughout the plant to repress expression of embryonic traits and may play a role in gibberellin-dependent responses. Plant Physiol 134:995–1005

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  27. Ikeda-Iwai M, Umehara M, Satoh S, Kamada H (2003) Stress-induced somatic embryogenesis in vegetative tissues of Arabidopsis thaliana. Plant J 34:107–114

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  28. Imin N, Nizamidin M, Daniher D, Nolan KE, Rose RJ, Rolfe BG (2005) Proteomic analysis of somatic embryogenesis in Medicago truncatula. Explant cultures grown under 6-benzylaminopurine and 1-naphthaleneacetic acid treatments. Plant Physiol 137:1250–1260

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  29. Kairong C, Gengsheng X, Xinmin L, Gengmei X, Yafu W (1999) Effect of hydrogen peroxide on somatic embryogenesis of Lycium barbarum L. Plant Sci 146:9–16

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Kamada H, Ishikawa K, Saga H, Harada H (1993) Induction of somatic embryogenesis in carrot by osmotic stress. Plant Tissue Cult Lett 10:38–44

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  31. Kielly GA, Bowley SR (1992) Genetic control of somatic embryogenesis in alfalfa. Genome 35:474–477

    Google Scholar 

  32. Kitamiya E, Suzuki S, Sano T, Nagata T (2000) Isolation of two genes that were induced upon the initiation of somatic embryogenesis on carrot hypocotyls by high concentrations of 2,4-D. Plant Cell Rep 19:551–557

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  33. Kiyosue T, Shiota H, Higashi K, Kamada H, Shinozaki K (1998) A chromo box gene from carrot (Daucus carota L.): its cDNA structure and expression during somatic and zygotic embryogenesis. Biochim Biophys Acta 1398:42–46

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  34. Kiyosue T, Ohad N, Yadegari R, Hannon M, Dinneny J, Wells D, Katz A, Margossian L, Harada JJ, Goldberg RB, Fischer RL (1999) Control of fertilization-independent endosperm development by the MEDEA polycomb gene in Arabidopsis. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 96:4186–4191

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  35. Kranz E (1999) In vitro fertilization with isolated single gametes. Methods Mol Biol 111:259–267

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  36. Kranz E, von Wiegen P, Lörz H (1995) Early cytological events after induction of cell division in egg cells and zygote development following in vitro fertilization with angiosperm gametes. Plant J 8:9–23

    Article  Google Scholar 

  37. Krishna Raj S, Vasil IK (1995) Somatic embryogenesis in herbaceous monocots. In: Thorpe TA (ed) In vitro embryogenesis in plants. Kluwer, Dordrecht, pp 417–470

    Google Scholar 

  38. Li G, Hall TC, Holmes-Davis R (2002) Plant chromatin: development and gene control. Bioessays 24:234–243

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  39. Lotan T, Ohto M, Yee KM, West MAL, Lo R, Kwong RW, Yamagishi K, Fischer RL, Goldberg RB, Harada JJ (1998) Arabidopsis LEAFY COTYLEDON1 is sufficient to induce embryo development in vegetative cells. Cell 93:1195–1205

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  40. Luo M, Bilodeau P, Koltunow A, Dennis ES, Peacock WJ, Chaudhury AM (1999) Genes controlling fertilization-independent seed development in Arabidopsis thaliana. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 96:296–301

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  41. Michalczuk L, Cooke TJ, Cohen JD (1992a) Auxin levels at different stages of carrot somatic embryogenesis. Phytochemistry 31:1097–1103

    Google Scholar 

  42. Michalczuk L, Ribnicky DM, Cooke TJ, Cohen JD (1992b) Regulation of indole-3-acetic acid biosynthetic pathways in carrot cell cultures. Plant Physiol 100:1346–1353

    Google Scholar 

  43. Moltrasio R, Robredo CG, Gomez MC, Paleo AHD, Diaz DG, Rios RD, Franzone PM (2004) Alfalfa (Medicago sativa) somatic embryogenesis: genetic control and introduction of favourable alleles into elite Argentinean germplasm. Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult 77:119–124

    Google Scholar 

  44. Mordhorst AP, Toonen MAJ, de Vries SC (1997) Plant embryogenesis. Crit Rev Plant Sci 16:535–576

    Google Scholar 

  45. Neumann KH (2000) Some studies on somatic embryogenesis: A tool in plant biotechnology. http://geb.uni-giessen.de/geb/volltexte/2000/321/

  46. Nishiwaki M, Fujino K, Koda Y, Masuda K, Kikuta Y (2000) Somatic embryogenesis induced by the simple application of abscisic acid to carrot (Daucus carota L.) seedlings in culture. Planta 211:756–759

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  47. Nolan KE, Irwanto RR, Rose RJ (2003) Auxin up-regulates MtSERK1 expression in both Medicago truncatula root-forming and embryogenic cultures. Plant Physiol 133:218–230

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  48. Nomura K, Komamine A (1985) Identification and isolation of single cells that produce somatic embryos at a high frequency in a carrot cell suspension culture. Plant Physiol 79:988–991

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  49. Ogas J, Cheng JC, Sung ZR, Somerville C (1997) Cellular differentiation regulated by gibberellin in the Arabidopsis thaliana pickle mutant. Science 277:91–94

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  50. Ogas J, Kaufmann S, Henderson J, Somerville C (1999) PICKLE is a CHD3 chromatin-remodeling factor that regulates the transition from embryonic to vegetative development in Arabidopsis. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 96:13839–13844

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  51. Ohad N, Yadegari R, Margossian L, Hannon M, Michaeli D, Harada JJ, Goldberg RB, Fischer RL (1999) Mutations in FIE, a WD polycomb group gene, allow endosperm development without fertilization. Plant Cell 11:407–416

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  52. Osuga K, Masuda H, Komamine A (1999) Synchronization of somatic embryogenesis at high frequency using carrot suspension cultures: model systems and application in plant development. Methods Cell Sci 21:129–140

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  53. Ötvös K, Pasternak TP, Miskolczi P, Domoki M, Dorjgotov D, Szûcs A, Bottka S, Dudits D, Fehér A (2005) Nitric oxide is required for, and promotes auxin-mediated activation of, cell division and embryogenic cell formation but does not influence cell cycle progression in alfalfa cell cultures. Plant J 43:849–860

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  54. Pasternak TP, Prinsen E, Ayaydin F, Miskolczi P, Potters G, Asard H, Van Onckelen HA, Dudits D, Fehér A (2002) The role of auxin, pH, and stress in the activation of embryogenic cell division in leaf protoplast-derived cells of alfalfa. Plant Physiol 129:1807–1819

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  55. Raghavan C, Ong EK, Dalling MJ, Stevenson TW (2005) Effect of herbicidal application of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid in Arabidopsis. Funct Integr Genomics 5:4–17

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  56. Reynolds TL (1997) Pollen embryogenesis. Plant Mol Biol 33:1–10

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  57. Ribnicky DM, Cohen JD, Hu WS, Cooke TJ (2001) An auxin surge following fertilization in carrots: a mechanism for regulating plant totipotency. Planta 214:505–509

    Google Scholar 

  58. Šamaj J, Baluška F, Pretová A, Volkmann D (2003) Auxin deprivation induces a developmental switch in maize somatic embryogenesis involving redistribution of microtubules and actin filaments from endoplasmic to cortical cytoskeletal arrays. Plant Cell Rep 21:940–945

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  59. Schmidt ED, Guzzo F, Toonen MA, de Vries SC (1997) A leucine-rich repeat containing receptor-like kinase marks somatic plant cells competent to form embryos. Development 124:2049–2062

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  60. Senger S, Mock HP, Conrad U, Manteuffel R (2001) Immunomodulation of ABA function affects early events in somatic embryo development. Plant Cell Rep 20:112–120

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  61. Somleva MN, Schmidt EDL, de Vries SC (2000) Embryogenic cells in Dactylis glomerata L. (Poaceae) explants identified by cell tracking and by SERK expression. Plant Cell Rep 19:718–726

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  62. Sprunck S, Baumann U, Edwards K, Langridge P, Dresselhaus T (2005) The transcript composition of egg cells changes significantly following fertilization in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Plant J 41:660–672

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  63. Stone SL, Kwong LW, Yee KM, Pelletier J, Lepiniec L, Fischer RL, Goldberg RB, Harada JJ (2001) LEAFY COTYLEDON2 encodes a B3 domain transcription factor that induces embryo development. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 98:11806–11811

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  64. Taylor RL (1967) The foliar embryos of Malaxis paludosa. Can J Bot 45:1553–1556

    Article  Google Scholar 

  65. Thibaud-Nissen FO, Shealy RT, Khanna A, Vodkin LO (2003) Clustering of microarray data reveals transcript patterns associated with somatic embryogenesis in soybean. Plant Physiol 132:118–136

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  66. Thomas C, Meyer D, Himber C, Steinmetz A (2004) Spatial expression of a sunflower SERK gene during induction of somatic embryogenesis and shoot organogenesis. Plant Physiol Biochem 42:35–42

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  67. Thorpe TA (1995) In vitro embryogenesis in plants. Kluwer, Dordrecht

    Google Scholar 

  68. Toonen MAJ, Hendriks T, Schmidt EDL, Verhoeven HA, van Kammen A, de Vries SC (1994) Description of somatic-embryo forming single cells in carrot suspension cultures employing video cell tracking. Planta 194:565–572

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  69. Toonen MAJ, Schmidt EDL, Hendriks T, Verhoeven HA, van Kammen A, de Vries SC (1996) Expression of the JIM8 cell wall epitope in carrot somatic embryogenesis. Planta 200:167–173

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  70. Wagner D (2003) Chromatin regulation of plant development. Curr Opin Plant Biol 6:20–28

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  71. Woeste KE, Ye C, Kieber JJ (1999) Two Arabidopsis mutants that overproduce ethylene are affected in the posttranscriptional regulation of 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid synthase. Plant Physiol 119:521–530

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  72. Yarbrough JA (1932) Anatomical and developmental studies of the foliar embryos of Bryophyllum calcynum. Am J Bot 19:443–453

    Article  Google Scholar 

  73. Yazawa K, Takahata K, Kamada H (2004) Isolation of the gene encoding Carrot leafy cotyledon1 and expression analysis during somatic and zygotic embryogenesis. Plant Physiol Biochem 42:215–223

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  74. Zheng H, Hall C (2001) Understanding auxinic herbicide resistance in wild mustard: physiology, biochemical, and molecular genetic approaches. Weed Sci 49:276–281

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  75. Zuo J, Niu QW, Frugis G, Chua NH (2002) The WUSCHEL gene promotes vegetative-to-embryonic transition in Arabidopsis. Plant J 30:349–359

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The research reported by the author was supported by grants BIO-00080/2002 and OTKA T34818. The author is also thankful for the support of the János Bólyai research fellowship.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Plant Biology, Biological Research Center, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, P.O. Box 521, 6701, Szeged, Hungary

    Attila Fehér

Authors
  1. Attila Fehér
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Attila Fehér .

Editor information

A. Mujib Jozef Šamaj

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Fehér, A. Why Somatic Plant Cells Start to form Embryos?. In: Mujib, A., Šamaj, J. (eds) Somatic Embryogenesis. Plant Cell Monographs, vol 2. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/7089_019

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation