ROA: Collaborative Research: Genetic/Environmental Effects on Plant Gametophytic/Sporophytic Dynamics

研究将集中在一种植物通过向其他个体捐赠花粉而产生的种子数量变化的原因。对玫瑰锦葵的初步研究表明，1)将父系基因带到子房的花粉管经常竞争一朵花内的胚珠，2)一些个体的花粉管比其他个体生长得更快。个体之间的这些差异可能是决定哪些植物在自然种群中繁殖种子最多的重要因素。研究人员将研究遗传和环境对花粉性能影响的相对重要性。他们还将检验花粉管生长速度与幼苗生长速度正相关的假设。结果可以直接应用于农业问题，通过确定是否可以通过人工授粉从一大群捐赠者植物中获得大量花粉来人工选择遗传优势的幼苗。还将讨论有关野生植物生殖生态的基本问题，这些植物应该得到保护，因为它们可能扮演着遗传“图书馆”的角色。这种野生木槿花中有用的遗传变异最终可能被引入到相关物种中，如栽培的木槿花、棉花、秋葵和红麻，以提高它们的活力和产量。

Research will focus on the causes of variation in the number of seeds that a plant produces by donating pollen to other individuals. Preliminary studies of rose mallow (Hibiscus moscheutos) showed that 1) pollen tubes, which carry paternal genes to the ovary, often compete for ovules within a flower, and 2) some individuals have faster growing pollen tubes than others. These differences among individuals are probably important in determining which plants sire the most seeds in natural populations. The investigators will examine the relative importance of genetic vs. environmental effects on pollen performance. They will also test the hypothesis that pollen tube growth rates are positively correlated with seedling growth rates. Results can be directly applied to agricultural problems by determining whether genetically superior seedlings can be artificially selected by hand-pollinating flowers with large amounts of pollen from a large group of donor plants. Fundamental questions will also be addressed about the reproductive ecology of wild plants, which should be conserved for their potential role as genetic "libraries". Useful genetic variation in this wild hibiscus could eventually be introduced into related species, such as cultivated hibiscus, cotton, okra, and kenaf, to improve their vigor and yield.