Endosperm turgor pressure decreases during early Arabidopsis seed development.
In Arabidopsis, rapid expansion of the coenocytic endosperm after fertilisation has been proposed to drive early seed growth, which is in turn constrained by the seed coat. This hypothesis implies physical heterogeneity between the endosperm and seed coat compartments during early seed development, which to date has not been demonstrated. Here, we combine tissue indentation with modelling to show that the physical properties of the developing seed are consistent with the hypothesis that elevated endosperm-derived turgor pressure drives early seed expansion. We provide evidence that whole-seed turgor is generated by the endosperm at early developmental stages. Furthermore, we show that endosperm cellularisation and seed growth arrest are associated with a drop in endosperm turgor pressure. Finally, we demonstrate that this decrease is perturbed when the function of POLYCOMB REPRESSIVE COMPLEX 2 is lost, suggesting that turgor pressure changes could be a target of genomic imprinting. Our results indicate a developmental role for changes in endosperm turgor pressure in the Arabidopsis seed.
Laboratoire Reproduction et Développement des Plantes, University of Lyon, ENS de Lyon, UCB Lyon 1, CNRS, INRA, Lyon F-69342, France.
Léna
L
Beauzamy
Laboratoire Reproduction et Développement des Plantes, University of Lyon, ENS de Lyon, UCB Lyon 1, CNRS, INRA, Lyon F-69342, France.
Chloé
C
Fourquin
Laboratoire Reproduction et Développement des Plantes, University of Lyon, ENS de Lyon, UCB Lyon 1, CNRS, INRA, Lyon F-69342, France.
Nelly
N
Dubrulle
Biochimie et Physiologie Moléculaire des Plantes, Unité Mixte de Recherche 5004, CNRS/INRA/Montpellier SupAgro/Université de Montpellier, 34060 Montpellier Cedex 2, France.
Yann
Y
Boursiac
Laboratoire Reproduction et Développement des Plantes, University of Lyon, ENS de Lyon, UCB Lyon 1, CNRS, INRA, Lyon F-69342, France Arezki.Boudaoud@ens-lyon.fr Gwyneth.Ingram@ens-lyon.fr.
Arezki
A
Boudaoud
Laboratoire Reproduction et Développement des Plantes, University of Lyon, ENS de Lyon, UCB Lyon 1, CNRS, INRA, Lyon F-69342, France Arezki.Boudaoud@ens-lyon.fr Gwyneth.Ingram@ens-lyon.fr.
Gwyneth
0000-0002-1425-9545
G
Ingram
D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D056625:Endosperm / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology; D063151:Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 / Q000378:metabolism; D012639:Seeds / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology
D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D063151:Polycomb Repressive Complex 2
Biophysics; Endosperm; Pressure; Seed; Turgor