title: Identification and characterization of flowering genes in kiwifruit: sequence conservation and role in kiwifruit flower development.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Flower development in kiwifruit (Actinidia spp.) is initiated in the first growing season, when undifferentiated primordia are established in latent shoot buds. These primordia can differentiate into flowers in the second growing season, after the winter dormancy period and upon accumulation of adequate winter chilling. Kiwifruit is an important horticultural crop, yet little is known about the molecular regulation of flower development.
  
  
  RESULTS
  To study kiwifruit flower development, nine MADS-box genes were identified and functionally characterized. Protein sequence alignment, phenotypes obtained upon overexpression in Arabidopsis and expression patterns suggest that the identified genes are required for floral meristem and floral organ specification. Their role during budbreak and flower development was studied. A spontaneous kiwifruit mutant was utilized to correlate the extended expression domains of these flowering genes with abnormal floral development.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study provides a description of flower development in kiwifruit at the molecular level. It has identified markers for flower development, and candidates for manipulation of kiwifruit growth, phase change and time of flowering. The expression in normal and aberrant flowers provided a model for kiwifruit flower development.
authors.affiliation: The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited (Plant & Food Research) Mt Albert, Private Bag 92169, Auckland Mail Centre, Auckland 1142, New Zealand. erika.varkonyi-gasic@plantandfood.co.nz
authors.forename: Erika
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Varkonyi-Gasic
authors.forename: Sarah M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Moss
authors.forename: Charlotte
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Voogd
authors.forename: Rongmei
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Robyn H
authors.initials: RH
authors.lastname: Lough
authors.forename: Yen-Yi
authors.initials: YY
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Roger P
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Hellens
mesh_terms: D029042:Actinidia / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development*; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001483:Base Sequence; D017124:Conserved Sequence; D018556:Crops, Agricultural / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development; D035264:Flowers / Q000166:cytology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development*; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D017343:Genes, Plant; D005819:Genetic Markers / Q000235:genetics; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010641:Phenotype; D010802:Phylogeny; D016415:Sequence Alignment
chemical_list: D005819:Genetic Markers