Table 2

Genetics of mutant alleles affecting the female gametophyte and seed development

Mutant^a,b

Segregation ratio^c,d

χ² (segregation ratio)^e

Seed abortion^f

χ² (seed abortion)^g

Mutant embryo sac phenotype

ken-1

0.97 (n = 290)

0.06**

54% (n = 327)

2.23*

54% unfused polar nuclei (n = 327)

fig-1^h

ND

ND

53% (n = 258)

0.99*

53% arrested one-nucleate embryo sac (n = 258)

hog1-4

1.96 (n = 548)

0.04**

26% (n = 552)

0.24*

ND

hog1-6

2.11 (n = 351)

0.21**

24% (n = 420)

0.11*

22% aberrant early endosperm mitosis and zygote (n = 318)

oma-1

2.10 (n = 251)

0.13**

18% (n = 514)

13.1^#

17% arrested, arrested mid-globular embryo (n = 269)

fey-1

1.99 (n = 425)

0.00**

21% (n = 414)

4.41**

19% arrested, arrested late-globular embryo (n = 243)

ila-1

1.92 (n = 038)

0.01**

23% (n = 352)

0.74*

20% and 3% arrested torpedo and late heart embryo (n = 352)

^aThe stock IDs of the mutant alleles are as follows: SM_3_23805, SALK_000711, CSHL_GT1724, Syngenta_18372 (EMB1395), GENOPLANTE_FBV_6 (EMB3011), Syngenta_102828 (EMB2753) and SALK_119854. ^bhog1-4 is in Ler background, hog1-6 and fey-1 in Ws, and the other four mutants in Col background. ^cSegregation ratio was calculated as a ratio of resistant to sensitive plants upon appropriate progeny selection in antibiotic on Murashigge and Skoog medium (n = total number of progeny). ^dken-1, hog1-6, and oma-1 were resistant to glufosinate-ammonium; hog1-4 was kanamycin resistant; PCR genotyping was done for fig-1 and ila-1 where the kanamycin selection was not possible due to gene silencing; ken-1 and hog1-6 exhibited partial silencing of the selection marker in later generations. ^eχ² statistic was calculated with the segregation ratio expectation of 1:1 for female gametophytic mutants and 2:1 for the zygotic mutants. Probability (P) values for the χ² values are as follows: *P = 0.05, **P = 0.01, and ^#P = 0.0004. ^fIn ken-1 and fig-1 the ovules were infertile, and they arrested before seed development. ^gχ² statistic for seed abortion was calculated with the aborted-to-normal expectation of 1:1 for female gametophytic mutants (ken-1 and fig-1) and 1:3 for the zygotic mutants (hog1-4, hog1-6, fey-1, oma-1, and ila-1). ^hLeft-border of the T-DNA was confirmed to be inserted in the first intron of at4g30840; the genotype did not co-segregate with the semi-sterile phenotype; similar phenotypic data were obtained for seven mutants in other genes and are thought to be unrelated to the insertions (data not shown). ND, not determined.

Johnston et al. Genome Biology 2007 8:R204   doi:10.1186/gb-2007-8-10-r204