AUTHOR=He Haihao , Chen Xinyi , Wang Tianye , Zhang Xiaoli , Liu Zedong , Qu Suping , Gu Zhijia , Huang Meijuan , Huang Haiquan 

TITLE=Flower development and a functional analysis of related genes in Impatiens uliginosa

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Plant Science

VOLUME=15

YEAR=2024

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2024.1370949

DOI=10.3389/fpls.2024.1370949

ISSN=1664-462X

ABSTRACT=<p><italic>Impatiens uliginosa</italic> is a plant of the <italic>Impatiens</italic>, with peculiar flowers. In this study, we combined morphogenesis and molecular biology to explore its development of flowers. An analysis of basic observational data and paraffin sectioning showed that it took approximately 13 d for the floral organs to differentiate. An analysis of the development of inflorescences and floral organs by scanning electron microscopy showed that the inflorescence of <italic>I. uliginosa</italic> is a spiral raceme. The floral organs differentiated in the following order: lateral sepals (Ls), posterior sepal (Ps), anterior sepals (As), anterior petal (Ap), lateral petals (Lp), stamens (St) and gynoecium (Gy). <italic>I. uliginosa</italic> was found to have four sepals, and the connate stamens are caused by the fusion and growth of filament appendages. The results of fluorescence quantification and virus-induced gene silencing showed that <italic>I. uliginosa</italic> had its own unique model for flower development, and there was functional diversity of <italic>IuAP1</italic> and <italic>IuDEF</italic>. Among them, <italic>IuAP1</italic> controls the formation of bract s (Br), regulates the morphogenesis of posterior sepal, controls the anthocyanin precipitation of the anterior petals and the formation of lateral petals. <italic>IuDEF</italic> regulates the morphogenesis of lateral sepals, the length of development of the spur, and controls the size of yellow flower color plaques of the lateral petals. In this study, the process of flower development and the function of flower development genes of <italic>I. uliginosa</italic> were preliminarily verified. This study provides basic guidance and new concepts that can be used to study the development of Impatiens flowers.</p>