Abstract
Asparagus spp. have a unique organ, phylloclade, which is thought to be homologous to a stem, the morphology of phylloclade is leaf-like and true leaves are reduced. In Asparagus, it is known that phylloclade has ability to photosynthesize, so that phylloclade seems to be an intermediate organ between stem and leaf, but nothing has been studied about the molecular mechanisms. In seed plants, genetic regulatory systems that distinguish stem and leaf identities remain unclear. From this point of view, phylloclade in Asparagus is an interesting model to study shoot/leaf differentiation.
We are studying developmental mechanisms of phylloclade using Asparagus asparagoides (L.) W. Wight. In addition, we are studying expression patterns of molecular marker genes involved in leaf and shoot development in phylloclade. In this report, we will show the identity of phylloclade in terms of the marker-gene expressions, and discuss the developmental mechanisms of phylloclade.
