Researcher(s)
- Meyer Scholl, Plant Science, University of Delaware
Faculty Mentor(s)
- Jesus Beltran, Plant and Soil Sciences, University of Delaware
Abstract
Pollen function is critical to conventional fruit and grain production, but its sensitivity to heat stress in combination with higher temperatures from global climate change threaten current and future agricultural yields. Researching pollen viability and response mechanisms to heat stress may provide insight towards crop improvements or other management approaches for protecting a key stage in food and seed production. Synthetic pollen germination media (PGM) is a versatile and convenient tool for studying pollen germination; not only does it give a high degree of control over substrate composition, but also allows unobstructed views of elongating tubes – growth that otherwise would be inside a style. This summer’s research had two primary components: identifying and tailoring a protocol for pollen germination on synthetic media for future standardized use with tomato and Arabidopsis thaliana, and using said protocol to observe the effects of applied heat and ABA (abscisic acid, a plant hormone and component of plant heat stress response systems) on pollen performance. Reviewing existing literature for PGM formulations that others had used successfully in related research yielded a number of options, but attempts to use and incorporate them into what would be used as a standard operating procedure were met with limited success, with stumbling blocks largely stemming from all-around low germination and poor replicability, in trials of the same formulations and in early heat/ABA treatment sets – rendering data generated of limited value. Further trials of PGM recipes and consistent replication would be needed to better satisfy both goals of the summer’s efforts, but the repeated troubleshooting done was still invaluable for developing pollen harvest, sample processing, and data collection components of a future protocol.