Genetic control of storage oil synthesis in seeds of Arabidopsis.

Quantitative trait loci (QTL) that control seed oil content and fatty acid composition were studied using a recombinant inbred population derived from a cross between the Arabidopsis ecotypes Landsberg erecta and Cape Verdi Islands. Multiple QTL model mapping identified two major and two minor QTL that account for 43% of the variation in oil content in the population. The most significant QTL is at the bottom of chromosome 2 and accounts for 17% of the genetic variation.

Transcripts of Vp-1 homeologues are misspliced in modern wheat and ancestral species.

The maize (Zea mays) Viviparous 1 (Vp1) transcription factor has been shown previously to be a major regulator of seed development, simultaneously activating embryo maturation and repressing germination. Hexaploid bread wheat (Triticum aestivum) caryopses are characterized by relatively weak embryo dormancy and are susceptible to preharvest sprouting (PHS), a phenomenon that is phenotypically similar to the maize vp1 mutation. Analysis of Vp-1 transcript structure in wheat embryos during grain development showed that each homeologue produces cytoplasmic mRNAs of different sizes.