Cytoplasmic inheritance in angiosperms

Abstract

The earliest studies of plastid transmission were showed maternal transmission in Mirabilis jalapa and biparental transmission in Pelargonium zonale. Two mechanisms have been proposed for maternal inheritance, “physical exclusion of the organelle” and the more likely possibility “digestion of organellar DNA” in generative/sperm cells. The replication or digestion of organellar DNA in young generative cells just after pollen mitosis I is a critical point to determine the mode of cytoplasmic inheritance. This review describes the complexity and diversity of cytoplasmic inheritance in angiosperms.