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Post-pollination hybridization barriers in Nicotiana section Alatae

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Abstract

Nicotiana section Alatae contains eight species with variable flower sizes and morphologies. Section members readily hybridize in the glasshouse, but no hybrids have been observed in natural sympatric and parapatric populations. To investigate interspecific crossing relationships with respect to mechanisms preventing hybridization, all members of section Alatae were intercrossed in a complete diallel. We found positive correlation between the pistil length of the pollen donor and interspecific seed set relative to the conspecific cross. Pollen tube growth rate and pollen donor pistil length were positively correlated as well. Furthermore, pollen from short-pistil members of section Alatae could only grow a maximum distance proportional to, but greater than, their own pistil lengths. Our results show that pollen tube growth capacity (i.e., rate and distance), provides a hybridization barrier in long-pistil species × short-pistil species crosses. We also found another hybridization barrier not specifically related to pollen tube growth capacity in short-pistil species × long-pistil species. Taken together, these barriers can generally be described by a ‘pistil-length mismatch’ rule; in section Alatae, pollen has the most success fertilizing ovules from species with pistil lengths similar to their own. This rule could contribute to hybridization barriers in Section Alatae because the species display dramatically different pistil lengths.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank Sherry Ellberg and Dr Rainee Kaczorowski for donation of plant materials. Helpful comments on preparation of the manuscript were provided by Dr Nathan Hancock and Dr Sunran Kim. This study was supported in part by a Life Sciences Fellowship from the University of Missouri, University of Missouri Research Board 97-033, and the US National Science Foundation grants IOB 0614962, DBI 0605200, and DEB 9727037. Any opinion, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

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  1. Division of Biological Sciences, 247 Life Sciences Center, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, 65211, USA

    Christopher B. Lee

  2. Department of Biochemistry, 212 Rebstock Hall, Washington University, St Louis, MO, 63130, USA

    Lawrence E. Page

  3. Division of Biochemistry, 240a Life Sciences Center, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, 65211, USA

    Bruce A. McClure

  4. Division of Biological Sciences, 105 Tucker Hall, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, 65211, USA

    Timothy P. Holtsford

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  1. Christopher B. Lee
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Correspondence to Christopher B. Lee.

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Communicated by Andrew Stephenson.

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Lee, C.B., Page, L.E., McClure, B.A. et al. Post-pollination hybridization barriers in Nicotiana section Alatae . Sex Plant Reprod 21, 183–195 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00497-008-0077-9

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