Characterization of a recalcitrant legume seed towards a better understanding of desiccation tolerance mechanisms

Abstract : Castanospermum australe is a tree species from the Fabaceae family, native to Australia but now found in as an ornamental in countries such as South Africa and USA. Its seeds are recalcitrant and, it is phylogenetically the closest recalcitrant species to Medicago truncatula, one of the genomic and genetic models of the Fabaceae. The latter species produces seeds that are orthodox and its seed development is well characterized at the molecular level by our group. Our objective is to identify genes and molecules involved in desiccation tolerance on the basis of their differential expression/accumulation between seeds of these two species. This comparative analysis first requires the physiological and molecular characterization of C. australe recalcitrant seeds.