In flowering plants, rapid activation of the zygotic genome occurs after fertilization1-3, but there is limited knowledge of the molecular pathways underlying embryo initiation4. In rice, a key role is played by the transcription factor BABY BOOM 1 (OsBBM1), initially expressed from the paternal genome1. Ectopic OsBBM1 expression in the egg cell can override the fertilization requirement, giving rise to parthenogenetic progeny5. Here we show that the WOX-family transcription factor DWARF TILLER1 (OsDWT1)/WUSCHEL-LIKE HOMEODOMAIN 9 (OsWOX9A)6, another gene paternally expressed in zygotes, is a strong enhancer of embryo initiation by OsBBM1. Co-expression of OsWOX9A and OsBBM1 in egg cells results in 86-91% parthenogenesis, representing 4- to 15-fold increases over OsBBM1 alone. These results suggest that embryo initiation is promoted by the synergistic action of paternal-genome-expressed transcription factors in the fertilized egg cell. These findings can be utilized for the efficient production of haploids, as well as clonal hybrid seeds in crop plants7,8.
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