Abstract
We have studied effect of high temperature stress on anther development in barley plants. Exposed to high temperature (30° day/25° night) for five days at the panicle differentiation stage, the following pollen development was completely aborted. In this study, we have found high temperature condition showed a high correlation coefficiency with transcriptional repression of replication-related and auxin-induced genes, and decrement of endogenous auxin levels in developing anthers. Consistent with this observation, the application of auxin to barley completely reversed male sterility by high temperature. Similar reductions in auxin levels and reversibility by auxin application occurred in the developing anther cells of Arabidopsis. Moreover expression of auxin biosynthesis genes yucca decreased by high temperature treatment in developing anthers of both plants. These data suggest that tissue specific auxin reduction is caused by repression of the biosynthesis genes through increasing temperatures and results in male sterility with comprehensive transcriptional alterations.
