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Morphological characteristics and molecular markers of distyly in Primula obconica

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Abstract

Primula obconica is a perennial herbaceous flower of the Primulaceae that exhibits distinct heterostyly. Long(L)- and short(S)-styled morphs differ substantially in various ways, which can directly affect the genetic regulation of plants. We can improve genetic breeding by understanding their differences and the genetic mechanisms of heterostyly. This trial of P. obconica, which included material and morphological observation, cross-fertilization characteristics, and ISSR molecular markers, was carried out to analyze the difference in distyly comprehensively. The findings demonstrated that the pollen, anther and other floral characteristics of L- and S-morphs varied. The results of the breeding characteristics showed that there were different self-incompatible mechanisms between both morphs, the L-morphs showed partial fitness, while the S-morphs showed complete heteromorphic incompatibility. The ISSR analysis also revealed that 19 primer pairs were polymorphic, clearly banded, and stable, showing significant differences in molecular markers for different morphs. Our study reveals the differences between the morphs of the Primula, which can provide a basis for genetic evolution and breeding work on heterostyly.

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Funding

The funding was provided by Natural Science Foundation of Hebei Province, C2021204113, The Special Scientific Research Fund of Talents Introduced into Hebei Agricultural University, YJ2022025 and The Basic Scientific Research Projects of Provincial Universities in Hebei Province, KY2022033.

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  1. College of Landscape and Tourism, Hebei Agricultural University, No. 289 Lingyusi Street, P. O. Box 28, Baoding, 071001, Hebei, China

    Jinfeng Li, Ping Li, Juan Li, Lu Zhang & Xiaoman Zhang

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  1. Jinfeng Li
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  2. Ping Li
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  3. Juan Li
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  4. Lu Zhang
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  5. Xiaoman Zhang
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All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by JL. The first draft of the manuscript was written by JL and LZ and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Ping Li or Xiaoman Zhang.

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10681_2023_3198_MOESM1_ESM.xlsx

Additional file 1: Figure S1. Relationship between stigma height and anther height of P.obconica distyly. Figure S2. Fruit setting rate of P. obconica under different pollinations. Figure S3. Amplification bands of different primers on L- and S-morphs. Additional file 2: Table S1. Description of pollen shape. Table S2. Treatment of NaOH concentration and time. Table S3. Number of amplified bands of L- and S-morphs. Supplementary file1 (XLSX 13 KB)

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Li, J., Li, P., Li, J. et al. Morphological characteristics and molecular markers of distyly in Primula obconica. Euphytica 219, 72 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10681-023-03198-x

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