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INCEST BARRIERS. “As many as 50% of angiosperms also possess mechanisms to avoid self-fertilization by using SI to prevent inbreeding. SI provides mechanisms for self-recognition and rejection, and is specified by S-determinant genes at a highly polymorphic, multi-allelic S-locus. Thus, this is a key mechanism involving crosstalk between pollen and pistil.” http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1674205214608996 View in LinkedIn

EYE OF NEWT. “In the world of synthetic biology, a world where bits, bytes, atoms and biology mix dreams with nightmare realities, it could be lethal to lag behind in patching potential vulnerabilities” http://www.computerworld.com/article/2471716/healthcare-it/dna-hackers--synthetic-biology-weaponized-virus--zero-day-exploit-to-infect-your-brain.html View in LinkedIn

SINGLE POLLEN TUBE SURVIVES. “In Arabidopsis, typically only a single pollen tube grows towards each ovule. Heterofertilization is likely extremely rare, as only about 1% of ovules attract two or more functional pollen tubes. These numbers indicate that various mechanisms exist in angiosperms to efficiently prevent polyspermy.” http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1674205214608996 View in LinkedIn

BEYOND AN INCONVENIENCE. “Bioengineers and security futurists are warning that the day is coming when criminals and bioterrorists hunt for vulnerabilities that will give a new meaning to zero-day exploits. In the future, a weaponized virus will aim to infect you, your brain and body biology, and not just your computer or mobile device.” https://lnkd.in/dtnU-Zp View in LinkedIn

BATTLE OF POLLEN TUBES. “In the grasses, multiple pollen tubes exit the transmitting tract in a race to reach the female gametophyte. The fastest-growing pollen tube penetrates the micropyle and releases its contents into the receptive synergid. Additional pollen tubes seem to be repelled, as heterofertilization, which indicates that sperm cells of two different pollen tubes have fused with both female gametes, is very rare in maize (about 1%).” http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1674205214608996 View in LinkedIn

CLOSING THE GATE. “Once double fertilization has been successfully achieved, it is important to establish barriers to prevent the attraction of additional pollen tubes and to prevent the release and fusion of multiple sperm with single gametes.” https://lnkd.in/dWq_2Eq View in LinkedIn

VIVID CELLULAR COMMUNICATION. “Intensive gamete crosstalk takes place and, after a process involving recognition, sperm activation, and adhesion of plasma membranes, both gamete pairs fuse (plasmogamy) and sperm contents are released inside female gametes.” http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1674205214608996 View in LinkedIn

FEMALE TISSUES COME ALIVE. “Thus, in contrast to the handful of gene expression changes during hydration, a very large number of gene expression changes occur when pollen tubes grow through pistil tissues. For example, over 1000 genes had significantly different expression in comparisons between semi-in vivo-grown pollen tubes and dry pollen, and a similar number after 4-h pollen tube growth; expression of a unique set of 383 pollen tube-expressed proteins present in pistil-interacted pollen tubes were identified.” http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1674205214608996 View in LinkedIn

GENES LIGHT UP. “Transcriptomic analyses have recently revealed an unsurpassed level of complex gene regulation relating to pollen–pistil interactions. Microarray analysis revealed that the transcriptome of Arabidopsis pollen tubes that have grown through pistil tissues using a semi-in vivo pollen tube growth system is significantly distinct from transcriptomes of pollen grains or pollen tubes grown in vitro, and implicate de novo gene expression in pollen tubes due to interactions with the female tissues.” http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1674205214608996 View in LinkedIn

FRAGMENT FROM NATURE continues from last weekend and concludes this weekend on the theme of double fertilization in flowering plants (Angiosperms). It is an impressively complicated way to reproduce. One interpretation of the why, is that during evolution, various hybrid forms are stitched together, and the survivors are not always efficient, but represent combinations and work-arounds that were just compatible enough to survive. Nature and perfection are not the same thing; she is usually composed of bizarre genetic meldings from disparate beasts glued together by happenstance. View in LinkedIn