The developmental and genetic bases of apetaly in Bocconia frutescens (Chelidonieae: Papaveraceae). Issue 1 (December 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Arango-Ocampo, Cristina; González, Favio; Alzate, Juan; Pabón-Mora, Natalia
• Is Part Of: EvoDevo. Volume 7:Issue 1(2016)
• Page Start: 1
• Page End: 18
• Publication Date: 2016-12
• Subjects: ABCE model -- AGAMOUS -- APETALA3 -- Apetaly -- Bocconia -- Homeosis -- Macleaya -- Papaveraceae -- Stylophorum; Evolution (Biology) -- Periodicals; Developmental biology -- Periodicals; 576.8
• DOI: 10.1186/s13227-016-0054-6
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2041-9139

Abstract

Abstract Background Bocconia andMacleaya are the only genera of the poppy family (Papaveraceae) lacking petals; however, the developmental and genetic processes underlying such evolutionary shift have not yet been studied. Results We studied floral development in two species of petal-less poppiesBocconia frutescens andMacleaya cordata as well as in the closely related petal-bearingStylophorum diphyllum . We generated a floral transcriptome ofB. frutescens to identify MADS-box ABCE floral organ identity genes expressed during early floral development. We performed phylogenetic analyses of these genes across Ranunculales as well as RT-PCR and qRT-PCR to assess loci-specific expression patterns. We found that petal-to-stamen homeosis in petal-less poppies occurs through distinct developmental pathways. Transcriptomic analyses ofB. frutescens floral buds showed that homologs of all MADS-box genes are expressed except for theAPETALA3 -3 ortholog. Species-specific duplications of other ABCE genes inB. frutescens have resulted in functional copies with expanded expression patterns than those predicted by the model. Conclusions Petal loss inB. frutescens is likely associated with the lack of expression ofAP3 -3 and an expanded expression ofAGAMOUS . The genetic basis of petal identity is conserved in Ranunculaceae and Papaveraceae although they have different number ofAP3 paralogs and exhibit dissimilar floral groundplans.