The Anther Tapetum in Cytoplasmic-Genetic Male Sterile Sorghum

Abstract

Measurements of anthers of five fertile lines of Sorghum vulgare Pers. indicate that the tapetum decreases in radial extent following the two-celled dyad stage of meiosis. At a mature pollen stage 78% of the anthers of fertile lines and 88% of those of a fertility restorer line have a narrow tapetum measuring between 4 and 16 μ radially, with the remainder having a degenerate tapetum less than 4 μ wide. In isogenic sterile lines, approximately 68% of the anthers have a narrow tapetum less than 16 μ wide at a “prepollen” stage, which represents the terminal stage in the sterile lines, whereas the remaining 32% have a well-developed or enlarged tapetum measuring over 28 μ in radial width. Tapeta in the sterile lines have a variation in width and in morphology not encountered in fertile lines and presumably display the variable manifestations of nuclear-cytoplasmic interaction characteristic of cytoplasmic-genetic male sterility.