Cytological characterization of a thermo-sensitive cytoplasmic male-sterile wheat line having K-type cytoplasm of Aegilops kotschyi

Male sterility is an important tool for obtaining crop heterosis. A thermo-sensitive cytoplasmic male-sterile (TCMS) line was developed recently using a new method based on tiller regeneration. In the present study, we explored the critical growth stages required to maintain thermo-sensitive male sterility in TCMS lines and found that fertility is associated with abnormal tapetal and microspore development. We investigated the fertility and cytology of temperature-treated plant anthers at various developmental stages. TCMS line KTM3315A exhibited thermo-sensitive male sterility in Zadoks growth stages 41-49 and 58-59. Morphologically, the line exhibited thermo-sensitive male sterility at 3-9 days before heading and at 3-6 days before flowering, and it was partially restored in three locations during spring and summer. TCMS line KTM3315A plants exhibited premature tapetal programmed cell death (PCD) from the early uninucleate stage of microspore development until the tapetal cells degraded completely. Microspore development was then blocked and the pollen abortion type was stainable abortion. Thus, male fertility in the line KTM3315A is sensitive to temperature and premature tapetal PCD is the main cause of pollen abortion, where it determines the starting period and affects male fertility conversion in K-type TCMS lines at certain temperatures.