Cold stress signalling in female reproductive tissues

• Published in: Plant, cell and environment cell and environment, 2019-03, Vol.42 (3), p.846-853
• Main Authors: Albertos, Pablo, Wagner, Konstantin, Poppenberger, Brigitte
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Agricultural production; Angiosperms; Animal reproduction; Breeding success; Cascades; Cold; Cold-Shock Response - physiology; Crop production; Fertilization; Flowering; Flowers - growth & development; Flowers - physiology; freezing; frost; fruit; Fruit trees; gynoecium; hormones; Organogenesis; Ovule - growth & development; Ovule - physiology; pistil; Plant Physiological Phenomena; plants; Pollen; Reproduction; Reproduction - physiology; Signal transduction; Signal Transduction - physiology; Signaling; Stress; Tissues; trees
• ISSN: 0140-7791; 1365-3040
• DOI: 10.1111/pce.13408

Cold stress is a significant threat for plant productivity and impacts on plant distribution and crop production, particularly so when it occurs during the growth phase. A developmental stage at risk is that of flowering, since a single stress event during sensitive stages, such as the full‐bloom stage of fruit trees can be fatal for reproductive success. Although pollen development and fertilization are widely viewed as the most critical reproductive phases, the development and function of female reproductive tissues, which in Angiosperms are embedded in the gynoecium, are also affected by cold stress. Today however, we have essentially no understanding of the cold stress response pathways that act during floral organogenesis. In this review, we briefly summarize our current knowledge of cold stress signalling modules active in vegetative tissues that may provide a framework of general principles also transferable to female reproductive tissues. We then align these signalling cascades with those that govern gynoecium development to identify factors that may act in both processes and could thereby contribute to cold stress responses in female reproductive tissues. This review focuses on the effects cold stress and especially frost can have on the development of female reproductive structures and on molecular events that are triggered by cold stress. Recent developments are highlighted, and possible targets for future research are pointed out.