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The influence of nitrogen on the development and accumulation of protein bodies in the developing endosperm of wheat caryopses

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Abstract

The aim of the present work was to reveal the histological changes of protein bodies (PBs) in the developing wheat endosperm under nitrogen (N) treatment. For this purpose, the development and accumulation of PBs in the dorsal and ventral regions of wheat endosperm affected by N application at booting stage were investigated using light microscopy and Image-Pro Plus 6.0 software. The endosperm without N treatment contained many smaller PBs that were scattered in endosperm cells in an unordered pattern, whereas the endosperm with N treatment contained many larger PBs or aggregations that were concentrated in a certain region of endosperm cells. The amount and relative areas of PBs in wheat varieties cvs. Xumai 30 and Yangmai 13 were significantly increased by N application. However, the cultivars differed with the degree of response to N being cv. Xumai 30 > cv. Yangmai 13. These differences also varied with position in the endosperm in the order ventral > dorsal region. The initiation of PBs occurred 3 days earlier in N-treated endosperm than the control.

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Abbreviations

PBs:

Protein bodies

DAA:

Days after anthesis

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Acknowledgments

The research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation (31171482), Jiangsu Natural Science Foundation (BK2011445), Jiangsu Graduate Innovation Project (CXLX12-0910), Priority Academic Program Development from Jiangsu Government, China, New Century Excellent Talents in University (NECT-11-0670), Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions, Jiangsu Postgraduate Innovation Project.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratories of Crop Genetics and Physiology of the Jiangsu Province and Plant Functional Genomics of the Ministry of Education, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, 225009, China

    Fei Xiong, Xu-Run Yu, Liang Zhou & Jing Zhang

  2. Jiangsu Yanjiang Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Nantong, 226541, China

    Bo Li & Jian Liu

  3. State Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Germplasm Enhancement, College of Horticulture, Nanjing Agricultural University, 1 Weigang, Nanjing, 210095, China

    Feng Wang & Ai-Sheng Xiong

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  1. Fei Xiong
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  2. Xu-Run Yu
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Correspondence to Fei Xiong.

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Xiong, F., Yu, XR., Zhou, L. et al. The influence of nitrogen on the development and accumulation of protein bodies in the developing endosperm of wheat caryopses. Mol Biol Rep 41, 689–695 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11033-013-2907-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11033-013-2907-6

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