During evolution of land plants, the first colonizing species presented leafy-dominant
gametophytes, found in non-vascular plants (bryophytes). Today, bryophytes include …

In flowering plants, pollen tubes undergo a journey that starts in the stigma and ends in the
ovule with the delivery of the sperm cells to achieve double fertilization. The pollen cell wall …

Background Polygalacturonase (PG), a crucial enzyme involved in pectin degradation, is
associated with various plants' developmental and physiological processes such as seed …

Male-sterile plants provide an important breeding tool for the heterosis of hybrid crops, such
as Brassicaceae. In the last decade, circular RNAs (circRNAs), as a novel class of covalently …

The specialized multilayered pollen wall plays multiple roles to ensure normal microspore
development. The major components of the pollen wall (eg sporopollenin and lipidic …

The cell wall of a mature pollen grain is a highly specialized, multilayered structure. The
outer, sporopollenin-based exine provides protection and support to the pollen grain, while …

Hybrid breakdown (HB) functions as a common reproductive barrier and reduces hybrid
fitness in many species, including cotton. However, the related genes and the underlying …

Pollen development and its germination are obligatory for the reproductive success of
flowering plants. Calcium-dependent protein kinases (CPKs, also known as CDPKs) …

Key message We identified and cloned the two precursors of miR158 and its target gene in
Brassica campestris ssp. chinensis, which both had high relative expression in the …

Thermo-sensitive cytoplasmic male sterility is of great significance to heterosis and hybrid
seed production in wheat. Consequently, it is worthwhile to research the genes associated …