Arabidopsis pollen extensins LRX are required for cell wall integrity during pollen tube growth

ANA R. SEDE, CECILIA BORASSI, DIEGO L. WENGIER, MARTÍN A. MECCHIA, JOSÉ M. ESTEVEZ AND JORGE P. MUSCHIETTI

FEBS LETTERS

ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV

Lugar: Amsterdam; Año: 2017

0014-5793

Proper cell wall assembly is crucial during pollentube growth. LRXs (Leucine-rich Repeat Extensin) are extracellular glycoproteins which belong to the hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein(HRGP) family. They contain a conserved N-terminal leucine-rich repeat (LRR) domain and a highly variable C-terminal extensin domain. Here, we characterized four LRX proteins (LRX8 through LRX11) from pollen of Arabidopsis thaliana. To investigate the role of these four LRXs in pollen germination and pollen tube growth, multiple knock-out lrx mutants were analyzed. lrx mutants displayed abnormal pollen tubes with an irregular deposition of callose and pectin. They also showed serious alterations in pollen germination and segregation ratio. Our results suggest that LRXs are involved in ensuring proper cell wall assembly during pollen tube growth.