Meristematic plasticity in Passiflora spp: Applications for the study of the origins of the tendrils and corona filaments

• Grant number: 15/18900-3
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Duration: March 01, 2016 - October 31, 2018
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Botany
• Principal Investigator: Marcelo Carnier Dornelas
• Grantee: Marcelo Carnier Dornelas
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biologia (IB). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil

Abstract

An important issue in plant biology is how morphological novelties are produced during evolution. The genus Passiflora represents an example of plants that display complex structures whose origins have not been elucidated yet, such as the floral corona filaments and the tendrils that grow in the axils of the leaves, next to a flower bud. Adult plants of Passiflora edulis constantly produce flower buds. The axillary meristem is subdivided into two domes, one that forms the tendril and another one that forms the flower meristem . An accessory axillary meristem is formed in between the tendril-flower complex and the stem, which corresponds to the axillary vegetative bud. The ontogeny and the arrangement of these structures have led some authors to consider the tendril in Passiflora as part of the primary axis of a reduced inflorescence, but the molecular mechanisms that define these structures of common origin but with completely different final identities are not clear. Similarly, much debate is still ongoing in the literature regarding the origin of the floral corona filaments of Passiflora, which have been suggested to be modified stamens, petals or sui generis organs. Our hypothesis is that conserved molecular mechanisms that modulate meristematic activity, either regulating determinate versus indeterminate growth or de novo meristem organization might be playing a role on the origin of both tendrils and corona filaments. Using tools appropriate to the study of ontogenesis and development, including optical and electron microscopy tools, associated to transcriptome and gene expression analysis, we aim to unravel the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying the identity and the ontogenesis of such elusive organs that represent evolutionary novelties in plants. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

BALDON AIZZA, LILIAN CRISTINA; HELENA FRANKLAND SAWAYA, ALEXANDRA CHRISTINE; DORNELAS, MARCELO CARNIER. Identification of anthocyanins in the corona of two species of Passiflora and their hybrid by ultra-high performance chromatography with electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-ESI-MS/MS). Biochemical Systematics and Ecology, v. 85, p. 60-67, AUG 2019. (15/18900-3, 18/21469-0)

MORAES, TATIANA SOUZA; DORNELAS, MARCELO CARNIER; MARTINELLI, ADRIANA PINHEIRO. FT/TFL1: Calibrating Plant Architecture. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE, v. 10, FEB 13 2019. (15/18900-3, 15/25633-1)

SCORZA, LIVIA C. T.; HERNANDES-LOPES, JOSE; MELO-DE-PINNA, GLADYS F. A.; DORNELAS, MARCELO C.. Expression patterns of Passiflora edulis APETALA1/FRUITFULL homologues shed light onto tendril and corona identities. EVODEVO, v. 8, FEB 2 2017. (15/18900-3)