title: [Calcium distribution in the egg cell, zygote and proembryo of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.)].
abstract: Potassium antimonite precipitation was used to located calcium in the egg cells (before and after anthesis), zygotes and proembryos of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.). A few calcium precipitates (ppts) were located in the small vacuoles of cytoplasm of egg cell at 3 d before anthesis, when egg cells just formed. Then the small vacuoles fused to form some bigger vacuoles in egg cell at 2d before anthesis. Calcium ppts increased evidently in the cytoplasm and nucleus of egg cells at this time. At 1d before anthesis, a biggest vacuole located at the micropyle end of the cell and its nucleus was pushed toward the chalazal end of the cell, which made an evident cellular polarity. The number of calcium ppts in the egg cell markedly decreased, suggesting that change of calcium distribution may be related to the development of egg cell. After anthesis and before fertilization, calcium ppts were still few in the egg cells, and most of them were accumulated in the nucleus, especially in the vacuoles of nucleolus. At 4h after anthesis, egg cell was fertilized and the wall at the chalazal end of egg cell was formed completely. Calcium ppts evidently increased again in egg cell, and some big ppts appeared in the karyoplasm of nucleus and abundant small ppts in the large vacuole. At 9h after anthesis, zygote completed its first division. Calcium ppts in the nucleus and cytoplasm of two-celled proembryo began to decrease, and only some ones accumulated in the vacuoles of nucleolus. At 18h after anthesis, zygote divided several times and became a multi-celled proembryo. Calcium ppts in the cells of proembryo ulteriorly diminished but there were many ppts on the surface of proembryo. The result indicates that calcium in egg cell, zygote and the cells of proembryo orderly changes its temporal and spatial position, which suggests that calcium may play a role during the development of egg cell and zygote.
authors.affiliation: School of Life Sciences, Hunan Normal University, Changsha 410081.
authors.forename: Yi Lan
authors.initials: YL
authors.lastname: Qiu
authors.forename: Ru Shi
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Dong Mei
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.forename: Hui Qiao
authors.initials: HQ
authors.lastname: Tian
mesh_terms: D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism*; D035264:Flowers / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D018545:Lactuca / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D012639:Seeds / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure
chemical_list: D002118:Calcium