| Budget Amount *help |
¥4,810,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,700,000、Indirect Cost: ¥1,110,000)
Fiscal Year 2019: ¥1,170,000 (Direct Cost: ¥900,000、Indirect Cost: ¥270,000)
Fiscal Year 2018: ¥2,080,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,600,000、Indirect Cost: ¥480,000)
Fiscal Year 2017: ¥1,560,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,200,000、Indirect Cost: ¥360,000)
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| Outline of Final Research Achievements |
Cone thermogenesis is a widespread phenomenon in cycads. The most commonly proposed role for plant thermogenesis is to promote the emission of volatiles that may serve to attract pollinators. In this study, we investigated thermogenic properties and mitochondrial function/morphology in thermogenic cycad species, Cycas revoluta. Both male and female cones generated heat, but heat producing ability of male cones is more significant than that of female. Thermal image of the male cone was successfully taken by an infrared thermal camera, and this image was adopted on the cover by Plant Physiology (June 2019). Ultrastructural and biochemical analyses revealed that the existence of a population of mitochondria with a distinct morphology and with a high capacity of alternative respiratory pathway in thermogenic tissues, microsporophylls. These results suggest that distinctive mitochondrial morphology and AOX-mediated respiration in microsporophylls might play a role in cycad thermogenesis.
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