Grain filling in barley relies on developmentally controlled programmed cell death
Volodymyr Radchuk, Van Tran, Alexander Hilo, Aleksandra Muszyńska, André Gündel, Steffen Wagner, Jörg Fuchs, Göetz Hensel, Stefan Ortleb, E. Muñz, Hardy Rolletschek, Ljudmilla Borisjuk
Abstract
Cereal grains contribute substantially to the human diet. The maternal plant provides the carbohydrate and nitrogen sources deposited in the endosperm, but the basis for their spatial allocation during the grain filling process is obscure. Here, vacuolar processing enzymes have been shown to both mediate programmed cell death (PCD) in the maternal tissues of a barley grain and influence the delivery of assimilate to the endosperm. The proposed centrality of PCD has implications for cereal crop improvement.
Topics & Concepts
EndospermProgrammed cell deathCell biologyBiologyCarbohydrateNitrogenAgronomyApoptosisChemistryBotanyBiochemistryOrganic chemistryPlant tissue culture and regenerationTransgenic Plants and ApplicationsPlant nutrient uptake and metabolism