Abstract
Selective seed abortion is a survival strategy adopted by many species that sacrifices some seeds to allow the remaining ones to set. While in evolutionary terms this is a successful approach, it causes huge losses to crop yields. A pollination time gap (PTG) has been suggested to be associated with position-related grain abortion. To test this hypothesis, we developed a novel approach to alter the natural pattern of maize (Zea mays L.) pollination and to examine the impact of PTGs on kernel growth and the underlying physiological basis. When apical and basal kernels were synchronously pollinated, the basal kernels set and matured but the apical kernels were aborted at an early stage. Delaying pollination to the basal ovaries suppressed their development and reduced invertase activity and sugar levels, which allowed the apical kernels to set and grow normally. In situ localization revealed normal cell wall invertase activity in apical and basal kernels under synchronous pollination but reduced activity in the delayed-pollinated kernels independent of their position. Starch, which was abundant in basal kernel areas, was absent in the apical kernel regions under synchronous pollination but apparent with delayed pollination. Our analyses identified PTG-related sink strength and a low level of local assimilates as the main causes of grain abortion.
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Claims 7
Claim · model-written summary
Under synchronous pollination of apical and basal kernels, basal kernels set and matured while apical kernels were aborted at an early stage in maize.
- Organ / stage
- apical kernelse2
- Treatment
- synchronously pollinatede2
- Outcome
- aborted at an early stagee2
- Comparator
- basal kernelse2
Zea maysNot reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“maize (Zea mays L.)”
e2“When apical and basal kernels were synchronously pollinated, the basal kernels set and matured but the apical kernels were aborted at an early stage”
Claim · model-written summary
Delaying pollination to the basal ovaries suppressed basal kernel development in maize relative to synchronous pollination.
- Organ / stage
- basal ovariese3
- Treatment
- Delaying pollination to the basal ovariese3
- Outcome
- developmente3
- Direction
- suppressede3
- Comparator
- synchronously pollinatede2
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“maize (Zea mays L.)”
e2“When apical and basal kernels were synchronously pollinated”
e3“Delaying pollination to the basal ovaries suppressed their development and reduced invertase activity and sugar levels, which allowed the apical kernels to set and grow normally”
Claim · model-written summary
Delaying pollination to the basal ovaries reduced invertase activity and sugar levels in maize relative to synchronous pollination.
- Organ / stage
- basal ovariese3
- Treatment
- Delaying pollination to the basal ovariese3
- Outcome
- invertase activity and sugar levelse3
- Direction
- reducede3
- Comparator
- synchronously pollinatede2
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“maize (Zea mays L.)”
e2“When apical and basal kernels were synchronously pollinated”
e3“Delaying pollination to the basal ovaries suppressed their development and reduced invertase activity and sugar levels, which allowed the apical kernels to set and grow normally”
Claim · model-written summary
Delaying pollination to the basal ovaries allowed apical kernels to set and grow normally in maize.
- Organ / stage
- apical kernelse3
- Treatment
- Delaying pollination to the basal ovariese3
- Outcome
- set and grow normallye3
- Comparator
- synchronously pollinatede2
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“maize (Zea mays L.)”
e2“When apical and basal kernels were synchronously pollinated”
e3“Delaying pollination to the basal ovaries suppressed their development and reduced invertase activity and sugar levels, which allowed the apical kernels to set and grow normally”
Claim · model-written summary
In situ, cell wall invertase activity was normal in apical and basal kernels under synchronous pollination but reduced in delayed-pollinated kernels irrespective of position in maize.
- Organ / stage
- apical and basal kernelse4
- Treatment
- delayed-pollinated kernelse4
- Outcome
- cell wall invertase activitye4
- Direction
- reducede4
- Qualifier
- independent of their positione4
- Comparator
- under synchronous pollinatione4
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“maize (Zea mays L.)”
e4“In situ localization revealed normal cell wall invertase activity in apical and basal kernels under synchronous pollination but reduced activity in the delayed-pollinated kernels independent of their position”
Claim · model-written summary
Starch was absent in apical kernel regions under synchronous pollination but present with delayed pollination in maize.
- Organ / stage
- apical kernel regionse5
- Treatment
- delayed pollinatione5
- Outcome
- Starche5
- Comparator
- under synchronous pollinatione5
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“maize (Zea mays L.)”
e5“Starch, which was abundant in basal kernel areas, was absent in the apical kernel regions under synchronous pollination but apparent with delayed pollination”
Claim · model-written summary
PTG-related sink strength and a low level of local assimilates were identified as the main causes of grain abortion in maize.
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“maize (Zea mays L.)”
e6“Our analyses identified PTG-related sink strength and a low level of local assimilates as the main causes of grain abortion”
The same questions in other papers
pollination · growth · Zea mays (maize)Positive and negative results
4 papers in the same direction as this paper · 3 in the opposite direction
- positive
- positive
- positive
4 papers more in this group
See all 8 papers →Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.