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Seeds of the Monocots

Ornithogalum dubium (Hyacinthaceae), yellow star-of-Bethlehem (collected in South Africa) seed, without obvious adaptations to dispersal but displaying an intricate surface pattern: the cells of the seed coat are interlocked like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle as shown by the undulating lines marking the borders of the individual cells, each forming a spine-like projection. Dispersal is probably achieved when the capsules fling out the seeds as they sway in the wind on their flexible stalks (anemoballism); length of seed: 1.1mm. © Rob Kesseler.

Characters of seed structure and development have long been known to be of significance for the interpretation of phylogenetic relationships among flowering plants. However, research in this area has dramatically declined since the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Corner's (1976) important and influential work The Seeds of the Dicotyledons summarised information on dicot seeds. However, such documentation is not readily available for monocots, partly because published information on monocot seeds remains limited, despite their considerable economic importance. This project aims to address various critical gaps, especially in (1) our understanding of the evolution of the grass caryopsis, and (2) comparative seed structure in basal monocots. Other goals include comparative embryo sac and early endosperm development in monocots.

The grass caryopsis represents the basis for several economically important crops, and has been the subject of many developmental-genetic investigations, particularly following the sequencing of the genome of rice (Oryza sativa L.) and its establishment as a model organism. However, the homologies of grass fruit structures remain doubtful. For example, it is not clear whether the grass caryopsis is homologous with other single-seeded, dry and indehiscent fruits within the order Poales. Furthermore, the highly complex grass embryo, which possesses a unique prominent outgrowth termed a scutellum, requires futher investigation. We are undertaking a series of comparative investigations in the order Poales and other commelinid monocots, especially the putative sister taxa to grasses (Ecdeiocoleaceae) and early-divergent grasses. A recent preliminary study of developing and mature seeds of Ecdeiocoleaceae highlighted the potential importance of perisperm for seed storage in grasses and their relative.

We also plan to investigate the developmental anatomy and morphology of fruits and seeds of species of early-divergent monocots (Alismatales), and develop a data matrix that can be analysed in the context of both molecular and fossil data, in order to elucidate patterns of phylogeny and character evolution at the base of the monocot tree.

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