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Structure and development of anthers and connective glands in two species of Stigmaphyllon (Malpighiaceae): are heteromorphic anthers related to division of labour?

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Abstract

Heteranthery has been largely associated with a division of labour between anthers. Most species of Stigmaphyllon (Malpighiaceae) present heteromorphic anthers and glandular connectives of different development; yet, the functional meaning of this condition has never been explored in the genus. The aims of this study were to provide a comparative description of the structure and development of anthers and their connective glands in S. bonariense and S. jatrophifolium and to assess the existence of division of functions. Natural populations were selected to collect flowers at different stages. Anthers were subjected to morpho-anatomical, histochemical and pollen viability studies. For both species, abundance of pollen grains and size of anther and their connective glands were estimated. Three types of stamens are recognized: stamen with small, intermediate and large anthers. Anthers of both species exhibit a similar glandular tissue in the connective, and the histochemical analysis revealed that it produce a mucilagous secretion. The pattern of anther wall development, stainability and release of pollen grains was identical among anther types. For both species, we observed a positive relationship between anther size and abundance of pollen grains, but an inverse relationship between area of anthers and size (area and thickness) of connective glands in small anthers vs. intermediate and large ones. Our results evidence a specialization of anthers related to division of labour between heteromorphic stamens in two species of Stigmaphyllon. Thus, one set of anthers produces large amount of pollen grains for pollination and another sets large quantities of mucilage, which would improve pollen transport (better adherence to pollinator body and dampness maintenance). Nevertheless, heteranthery in both Stigmaphyllon species would represent a transitional state towards the division of labour rather than a stable state.

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Acknowledgments

We thank H. J. Marrero for his support on statistical analysis, N. A. Ramirez for helping with the statistical figures and S. S. Aliscioni for the constructive comments on our work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. IBONE-UNNE-CONICET, Instituto de Botánica del Nordeste, Corrientes, Argentina

    Adan Alberto Avalos, Elsa Clorinda Lattar & María Silvia Ferrucci

  2. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Adan Alberto Avalos, Torretta Juan Pablo & María Silvia Ferrucci

  3. Facultad de Agronomía, Cátedra de Botánica General, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Av. San Martín 4453, C1417DSE, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Torretta Juan Pablo

  4. Cátedra de Morfología de Plantas Vasculares, Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias, FCA-UNNE, Corrientes, Argentina

    Elsa Clorinda Lattar

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  1. Adan Alberto Avalos
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All the authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by Adan Alberto Avalos. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Adan Alberto Avalos, and all the authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All the authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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This work was supported by the Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (PIP N° 11220170100429C) and the Universidad Nacional del Nordeste (PI N° 15-A002), Argentina.

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Avalos, A.A., Pablo, T.J., Lattar, E.C. et al. Structure and development of anthers and connective glands in two species of Stigmaphyllon (Malpighiaceae): are heteromorphic anthers related to division of labour?. Protoplasma 257, 1165–1181 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00709-020-01497-x

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