Meeting Abstract

69-1   10:30 - 10:45  Candidate genes for nectary development in Penstemon Katzer, AM*; Wessinger, CA; Hileman, LC; University of Kansas; University of South Carolina; University of Kansas a681k477@ku.edu

Flowering plants use a number of key floral traits to effectively attract and facilitate pollen movement by biotic pollinators (pollination syndromes). We focus on the ecologically important trait of nectar, produced by structural nectaries in Penstemon. In this study, we used a transcriptomic approach in two species of Penstemon, the bee-pollinated P. neomexicanus and the hummingbird-pollinated P. barbatus to generate a list of candidate genes for modified-trichome nectary development. We narrowed this list of candidate genes by additionally generating transcriptomic data from floral tissues in the F1 hybrid to detect cis-regulated genes that differ in expression between P. neomexicanus and P. barbatus. The candidate genes identified further our understanding of trichome-based nectary development, and our understanding of nectary trait differences between species with differing pollination syndromes.