Development of wheat (Triticum aestivum) pollen wall before and after effect of a gametocide

Abstract

Light and electron microscopy studies show that pollen wall development in plants treated with the gametocide RH0007 and untreated plants was similar until the stage at which sporopollenin is normally deposited on the wall. At this stage, the pollen wall of treated plants is 80% thinner than that of the control. Shortly after this stage, the pollen grains in the treated plants collapse and abort. We conclude that the gametocide clearly acts through the inhibition of sporopollenin formation, which results in pollen death. As sporopollenin is found only in the pollen wall of seed plants and the spores of nonseed plants, harm to other parts of the plant is not expected to occur. Key words: pollen wall development, Triticum aestivum, gametocide.