Ablation of Papillar Cell Function in Brassica Flowers Results in the Loss of Stigma Receptivity to Pollination.

Plant reproduction in crucifers is dependent on interactions that occur at the stigma surface between the male gametophyte (pollen and pollen tube) and papillar cells. To dissect these complex interactions, papillar cells were genetically ablated by targeting the expression of a toxin to appropriate cells of the flower with a flower-specific and developmentally regulated promoter. In transgenic Brassica plants that expressed the toxic gene fusion, flower morphology was normal except for aberrant papillar cell development and partial pollen sterility. Microscopic, biochemical, and functional analyses, mainly focused on papillar cell responses, revealed that papillar cells lost their ability to elongate, to synthesize cell-specific proteins, and to support pollen germination after self- or cross-pollination. This loss of stigma receptivity to pollination was mimicked by treating pistils with protein phosphatase inhibitors. Differences in the effects of genetic and chemical ablation on the pollination responses of Brassica and Arabidopsis flowers are discussed and are ascribed in part to a requirement for phosphorylation/dephosphorylation events in Brassica but not in Arabidopsis.