Yield assessment of integument‐led seed growth following targeted repair of auxin response factor 2

Abstract

Summary It is becoming increasingly vital to improve the yield of seed crops to feed an expanding population and, more recently, for biofuel production. One strategy to increase the yield is to increase the seed size, provided that there is not a concomitant decrease in seed number. In a previous study, we described a mutant in the AUXIN RESPONSE FACTOR 2 (ARF2) gene which produced extra cells in the seed coat and, subsequently, enlarged seeds. However, arf2 mutant plants also show severely reduced self‐fertility caused, in part, by over‐elongated sepals that prevent flower opening. As a low seed set increases individual seed size, a meaningful comparison of the yield in arf2 and wild‐type plants could not be conducted. In this study, we show that targeted expression of wild‐type ARF2 in the sepals and petals of arf2‐9 mutant flowers restores flower opening and dramatically increases seed set. The restored plants retain both enlarged integuments and increased seed size, reinforcing previous evidence that arf2 mutations increase seed weight through their effect on integuments and not only via reduced fertility. We also show that the measurement of the harvest index in Arabidopsis is useful in assessing the impact of introduced traits on the yield.

Heating quinoa shoots results in yield loss by inhibiting fruit production and delaying maturity

“…AUR62034763 is associated with flower morphogenesis and development and is a homolog of the Arabidopsis TF AUXIN RESPONSE FACTOR 2 ( ARF2 ). ARF2 is a pleiotropic developmental regulator (Okushima et al , ) associated with flower opening, fertility and seed yield in Arabidopsis (Hughes et al , ). The Arabidopsis arf2 mutant makes sepals grow longer, preventing petals from separating, so the flowers do not open, which then lowers seed set and yield (Hughes et al , ).…”

“…ARF2 is a pleiotropic developmental regulator (Okushima et al , ) associated with flower opening, fertility and seed yield in Arabidopsis (Hughes et al , ). The Arabidopsis arf2 mutant makes sepals grow longer, preventing petals from separating, so the flowers do not open, which then lowers seed set and yield (Hughes et al , ). As flower development was delayed in quinoa treatments with yield losses (HS and HRS; Figure c) and transcription factors differentially expressed in these treatments are associated with flower development, it is possible that flower development may have a significant role in yield losses with shoot heat treatments.…”

Gene-Based Single Nucleotide Polymorphism Markers for Genetic and Association Mapping in Common Bean

“…The ARF gene family has been repeatedly associated with flower and fruit maturation and development [61-63]. For instance, the arf2 mutants presented enlarged rosette leaves, thickened inflorescence stems, delayed flowering and senescence, reduced fertility and increased seed size [64,65]. …”

Genome Wide Analysis of Fatty Acid Desaturation and Its Response to Temperature

“…High temperature causes infertility in Arabidopsis (Bac-Molenaar et al, 2015), and we found that 30°C is approaching the higher temperature threshold for Col-0. This may explain the reduction in seed set, which also is known to lead to an increase in seed size (Hughes et al, 2008).…”