1. Evolutionary development of the plant spore and pollen wall
- Author
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David J. Beerling, Simon Wallace, Andrew Fleming, and Charles H. Wellman
- Subjects
medicine.medical_specialty ,biology ,Plant spore ,Ecology ,fungi ,food and beverages ,Plant Science ,medicine.disease_cause ,biology.organism_classification ,Spore ,Pollen ,Molecular genetics ,Spore wall ,Botany ,medicine ,Evolutionary developmental biology ,Arabidopsis thaliana ,Pollen wall - Abstract
Background and aims Many key innovations were required to enable plants to colonize terrestrial habitats successfully. One of these was the acquisition of a durable spore/pollen wall capable of withstanding the harsh desiccating and UV-B-rich environment encountered on land. The spores of ‘lower’ spore-bearing plants and the pollen of ‘higher’ seed plants are homologous. In recent years, researchers have begun to investigate the molecular genetics of pollen wall development in angiosperms (including the model organism Arabidopsis thaliana). However, research into the molecular genetics of spore wall development in more basal plants has thus far been extremely limited. This review summarizes the literature on spore/pollen wall development, including the molecular genetics associated with pollen wall development in angiosperms, in a preliminary attempt to identify possible candidate genes involved in spore wall development in more basal plants.
- Published
- 2011
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