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Genetic and embryological evidences of apomixis at the diploid level in Paspalum rufum support recurrent auto-polyploidization in the species

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Abstract

Gametophytic apomixis is an asexual mode of reproduction by seeds. This trait is present in several plant families and is strongly associated with polyploidy. Paspalum rufum is a forage grass with sexual self-incompatible diploids (2n = 2x = 20) and aposporous-apomictic pseudogamous tetraploids (2n = 4x = 40). In previous work embryological observations of the diploid genotype Q3754 showed 8.8–26.8% of the ovaries having one meiotic plus an aposporous-like embryo sac, suggesting some capability for apomictic reproduction. The objective of this work was to characterize progenies derived from Q3754 to determine if aposporous sacs were functional and generated progenies via apomixis at the diploid level. Re-examination of Q3754 ovaries showed that 12.5% of them contained one sexual plus an aposporous sac confirming previous results. Progeny tests were carried out on two experimental families (H1 and S1) employing heterozygous RAPD marker loci. Family H1 was obtained crossing Q3754 with a natural diploid genotype (Q3861) and S1 derived from the induced self-pollination of Q3754. Genetic analysis of H1 showed that all individuals derived from sexual reproduction. However, 5 out of 95 plants from S1 showed the same heterozygous state as the mother plant for 14 RAPD loci suggesting a clonal origin. Further experiments, designed to test the functionality of aposporous sacs by flow cytometric analyses, were carried out on a third family (M1) obtained by crossing Q3754 with the tetraploid plant Q3785. Histograms of 20 M1 plants showed 15 diploids (75%), 4 triploids (20%) and 1 tetraploid (5%). Triploids and the tetraploid may have originated from functional aposporous embryo sacs. Likewise, the reconstruction of the developmental route of 40 individual seeds demonstrated that 11 of them (27.5%) derived from fertilized aposporic sacs. The results presented in this work indicate that gametophytic apomixis is effectively expressed at the diploid level in Paspalum rufum and could be the foundation of a recurrent auto-polyploidization process in the species.

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Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank Dr Silvina Pessino and Prof. Michael Hayward for critically reading the manuscript. They also thank Florencia Galdeano for her technical assistance. This study was financed by the Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Tecnológica (ANPCyT), Argentina, PICT 2003 No. 13578 and PAV 2003 No. 137/3; Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Argentina, PIP 2004 No. 6805. Centro Argentino Brasilero de Biotecnología (CABBIO 2004 No. 012). L. Siena and M. Sartor received fellowships from CONICET and F. Espinoza, C.L. Quarin and J.P.A. Ortiz are career members of CONICET.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratorio de Biología Molecular, Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias, Universidad Nacional de Rosario (UNR), CC 14 (S2125ZAA), Zavalla, Santa Fe, Argentina

    L. A. Siena & J. P. A. Ortiz

  2. Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste (IBONE), Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias, Universidad Nacional del Nordeste (UNNE), CONICET, CC 209, 3400, Corrientes, Argentina

    M. E. Sartor, F. Espinoza, C. L. Quarin & J. P. A. Ortiz

Authors
  1. L. A. Siena
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  2. M. E. Sartor
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  3. F. Espinoza
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  4. C. L. Quarin
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  5. J. P. A. Ortiz
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Correspondence to J. P. A. Ortiz.

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Communicated by J.S. Heslop-Harrison.

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Siena, L.A., Sartor, M.E., Espinoza, F. et al. Genetic and embryological evidences of apomixis at the diploid level in Paspalum rufum support recurrent auto-polyploidization in the species. Sex Plant Reprod 21, 205–215 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00497-008-0080-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00497-008-0080-1

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