Abstract
BackgroundUnreduced gametes (gametes with the somatic chromosome number) may provide a pathway for evolutionary speciation via allopolyploid formation. We evaluated the effect of genotype and temperature on male unreduced gamete formation in Brassica allotetraploids and their interspecific hybrids. The frequency of unreduced gametes post-meiosis was estimated in sporads from the frequency of dyads or giant tetrads, and in pollen from the frequency of viable giant pollen compared with viable normal pollen. Giant tetrads were twice the volume of normal tetrads, and presumably resulted from pre-meiotic doubling of chromosome number. Giant pollen was defined as pollen with more than 1.5 × normal diameter, under the assumption that the doubling of DNA content in unreduced gametes would approximately double the pollen cell volume. The effect of genotype was assessed in five B. napus, two B. carinata and one B. juncea parents and in 13 interspecific hybrid combinations. The effect of temperature was assessed in a subset of genotypes in hot (day/night 30°C/20°C), warm (25°C/15°C), cool (18°C/13°C) and cold (10°C/5°C) treatments.ResultsBased on estimates at the sporad stage, some interspecific hybrid genotypes produced unreduced gametes (range 0.06 to 3.29%) at more than an order of magnitude higher frequency than in the parents (range 0.00% to 0.11%). In nine hybrids that produced viable mature pollen, the frequency of viable giant pollen (range 0.2% to 33.5%) was much greater than in the parents (range 0.0% to 0.4%). Giant pollen, most likely formed from unreduced gametes, was more viable than normal pollen in hybrids. Two B. napus × B. carinata hybrids produced 9% and 23% unreduced gametes based on post-meiotic sporad observations in the cold temperature treatment, which was more than two orders of magnitude higher than in the parents.ConclusionsThese results demonstrate that sources of unreduced gametes, required for the triploid bridge hypothesis of allopolyploid evolution, are readily available in some Brassica interspecific hybrid genotypes, especially at cold temperatures.
Highlights
IntroductionUnreduced gametes (gametes with the somatic chromosome number) may provide a pathway for evolutionary speciation via allopolyploid formation
Unreduced gametes may provide a pathway for evolutionary speciation via allopolyploid formation
Characterization of putative interspecific hybrid plants Seed set in the 34 possible Brassica interspecific cross combinations varied widely, and in 29 successful crosses there was an average of 0.82 seeds per pollinated bud (Table 1, Additional file 2)
Summary
Unreduced gametes (gametes with the somatic chromosome number) may provide a pathway for evolutionary speciation via allopolyploid formation. We evaluated the effect of genotype and temperature on male unreduced gamete formation in Brassica allotetraploids and their interspecific hybrids. Unreduced gametes may be important in polyploid evolution via a triploid bridge [1]. The triploid bridge hypothesis builds on the possibility that unbalanced interspecific hybrid plants produce more unreduced gametes than the parental species, but this has never been quantitatively tested under controlled experimental conditions [2]. The triploid bridge hypothesis may provide a more likely scenario for polyploid evolution than alternative hypotheses which require two unreduced gametes to unite by chance in an interspecific hybridization event (e.g. AA + BB = AABB), or which require chromosome doubling to occur in somatic tissue of a seed-derived hybrid (e.g. AB to AABB) [6]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
