Cell fate in the development of the Arabidopsis flower

• Published in: The Plant journal : for cell and molecular biology 1996-10, Vol.10 (4), p.645-654
• Main Author: Furner, Ian J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Arabidopsis - cytology; Arabidopsis - genetics; Arabidopsis - growth & development; Arabidopsis - radiation effects; Biological and medical sciences; Biology and morphogenesis of the reproductive apparatus. Photoperiodism, vernalisation; Cell Lineage; Chimera; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Genes, Plant; Meristem - cytology; Meristem - genetics; Meristem - growth & development; Meristem - radiation effects; Models, Anatomic; Phenotype; Plant physiology and development; Plant Shoots - cytology; Plant Shoots - genetics; Plant Shoots - growth & development; Plant Shoots - radiation effects; Vegetative and sexual reproduction, floral biology, fructification
• ISSN: 0960-7412; 1365-313X
• DOI: 10.1046/j.1365-313X.1996.10040645.x

The Arabidopsis flower consists of four concentric whorls of organs. The first (outermost) whorl consists of four sepals and the fourth (innermost) whorl is made up of two carpels. Cell fate in the first and fourth whorls was studied using X‐ray‐induced yellow ch‐42 sectors. Sector boundaries were found to be non‐random around the two whorls and four generalizations relating the marked and unmarked tissues were deduced. In the sepal and carpel whorls the smallest sectors of marked and unmarked tissue were found to be one half of a sepal and one half of a carpel, respectively. A detailed frequency‐distance map of the floral primordium was made and found to be a ridge with the fourth whorl carpels at the summit and the first whorl transverse sepal pair at the base. Consideration of: the rate of loss of chimerism in the inflorescence meristem, the frequency‐distance across the flower and the frequency‐distance between successive flowers, was used to produce an model of the inflorescence meristem.