明确水稻花粉发育的分子机制对于杂种优势利用具有重要意义。我们发现了一个新的花粉发育突变体sts1，细胞学分析显示其绒毡层和小孢子发育均明显异常。利用MutMap方法结合基因敲除技术，成功克隆了STS1并证实其为一个包含非典型DUF结构域的新基因，而该类基因的生物学功能尚不清楚。深入分析发现STS1可同源二聚化，并可与其相似蛋白STS1-Like形成异源二聚体，亦可与另一花药高表达蛋白STS1-Interacted1直接互作。此三者的关系可能提示一种目前未知的花粉育性调控新机制。本研究拟利用BiFC、Co-IP等生化手段确认这些互作及寡聚化的真实性和生物学意义；并利用互补、敲除等遗传方法证实它们的遗传学功能；同时，利用电镜和TUNEL等细胞学技术明确它们影响花粉发育的具体过程。本研究将为水稻花粉发育机制和植物DUF类蛋白功能探索提供全新见解，并为水稻杂优利用创制有应用价值的新不育质源。

It is important to understand the molecular mechanism of rice pollen development for the utilization of heterosis. We have recently isolated a new pollen developmental mutant, sts1, in which the developments of tapetum and microspores were both abnormal. By combining a MutMap method with the CRISPR/Cas9 technology, we successfully cloned STS1 gene and confirmed it to be a new gene containing an atypical DUF domain, whose biological function remains currently unknown. Further analysis revealed that STS1 can be homodimorphized and form heterodimers with its homologous protein STS1-like. Besides, STS1 directly interacts with STS1-interacted1, another anther highly accumulated gene. Therefore the possible association among these components may suggest a currently unknown regulation mechanism underlying pollen fertility. In this study, we aim to confirm the authenticity and biological significance of these interactions and dimerization by using several biochemical methods, such as Y2H, BiFC and Co-IP analysis. Besides, we want to verify their genetic functions by employing genetic methods such as genetic complementation analysis and CRISPR/Cas9 dependent knockout assay. At the same time, by using cytological techniques such as SEM, TEM, and TUNEL analysis, we aim to reveal the actual pollen development process that those genes were involved in. Our work will provide new insights both for the mechanism of rice pollen development and for the exploration of biological function of DUF proteins in plants. It will also create useful male sterile germplasm for the utilization of rice heterosis.