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Bestie, are you up???

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Yeah!!! What’s up??

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Have you heard about this??

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Oh, I haven't seen that yet. I'll go read up on it!

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What is a gene bank by the way?

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Based on an article written by Kowalski (2015), gene banks are those that are used to conserve plants and animals when there's a need for rebuilding of populations in the future. Seed bank is one of the several types of gene bank. Do you happen to know what a seed bank is?

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Yeah! We wrote a paper on this a few weeks ago. It’s very interesting! I’ll insert a portion of it here.

A seed bank is a facility where copies of seeds are stored. An example of which is the Svalbard Global Seed Vault located in the arctic circle. It was created as a backup system for the world’s gene banks to protect and preserve the world's agricultural genetic diversity in case of any catastrophes that could potentially wipe it out. With this, it can be inferred that seed banks function not only as storage for seeds, but also as humanity’s insurance of food supply, should any phenomenon driving our agriculture to extinction occur in the future. Various factors such as climate change, diseases, and clones of modern industrial agriculture are threatening the loss of a wide array of plant species (Wendle, 2021). With seed banks, it is ensured that nature’s genetic diversity isn’t lost. This is very telling of their agricultural and economical importance.

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It’s so cool, right? I never thought there was something like that. I wonder if there’s a seed bank here in the Philippines.

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I actually don’t think we have one here. However, I came across this website that mentioned that the Philippines contributed the most rice seed collection to the global seed vault in 2009 through the International Rice Research Institute (Grejalde, 2009).

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It’s sad how more efforts are being put into illegal logging and deforestation and utilizing our resources for other purposes, rather than establishing a seed bank.

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I agree. It would be nice if more organizations participate in preserving our resources for the future. I’m just curious. If you were to give 10 seeds from the Philippines to a seed bank, what would they be and why would you choose them?

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I think I’ll be getting seeds from Ifugao since it has a very rich macroflora biodiversity, with 37 out of 214 species being endemic to the Philippines, according to the biodiversity study of Taguiling (2014). In the same study, an ethnobotanical survey was also conducted to document the uses of the plant species found in the locality. If I were to choose 10 seeds out of the 37 Philippine endemic species found in Ifugao, I would give the seeds of Neonauclea media, Syzygium samarangense, Syzygium polycephaloides, Ficus septica, Medinilla clementis, Saurauia elegans, Mallotus philippinensis, Sauraia bontocensis, Machilus philippinensis, and Diospyros philippinensis because of their specific ethnobotanical uses as food and medicine, as well as handicraft and lumber, all of which are of economical importance.

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Oh, I've never heard of these species. I’ll look them up.

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That’s a good idea! We can send photos of them here.

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Neonauclea media
Ethnobotanical Use: medicine

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Syzygium samarangense
Ethnobotanical Use: food/medicine

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Syzygium polycephaloides
Ethnobotanical Use: food/medicine

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Ficus septica
Ethnobotanical Use: medicine

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Medinilla clementis
Ethnobotanical Use: medicine

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Saurauia elegans
Ethnobotanical Use: medicine

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Mallotus philippinensis
Ethnobotanical Use: medicine

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Sauraia bontocensis
Ethnobotanical Use: food/medicine

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Machilus philippinensis
Ethnobotanical Use: lumber

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Diospyros philippinensis
Ethnobotanical Use: handicraft/lumber

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Now that we already have an idea about concerted efforts on preserving plant resources through seed banks, don’t you think it is important to know what a seed is, and what’s inside of it?

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Of course! Knowing the parts of the seeds gives the people the capability to process, clean, x-ray, and store these to stop their metabolic processes for the seeds not to die nor germinate while in storage. This is important because the purpose of the seed vault is to preserve the genetic material and the biodiversity of the future catastrophes that may take place. Seeds vary in sizes, shapes, thickness and their purpose as it may be medicinal, which are all studied and further researched through the basic knowledge of what a seed is and its contents. With the use of pictures of the seeds, more are educated and aware, as many seeds are only known to be seeds when they are opened and cut up. Moreover, some seeds have wings, hairs, parachutes, all for varying dispersal methods which is another reason why seeds may have different appearances and may easily be mistaken for another type of organism.

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That makes so much sense!

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Yes! Aside from appearances, plants also have differences in their processes such as embryogenesis in monocots and eudicots. I could tell you about it but it’s gonna be quite lengthy.

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Worry not, my friend! I constructed this table of comparisons based on our book in Plant Developmental Biology by Taiz et al. (2014). It’ll be easier for us to remember using this table!

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Wow, this would be really helpful for our final exams! Thank you.

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Sure! We could also look for figures that could help us remember these stages.

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I found one for monocot embryogenesis.

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MONOCOT EMBRYOGENESIS
Rice (a monocot in the grass [Poaceae] family) embryonic development illustrating the globular stage (A), coleoptile stage (B), juvenile embryo stage (C), and mature embryo stage (D). The scutellum is a modified cotyledon specialized to absorb sugars released from the endosperm during germination. (Courtesy of Y. Nagato.)

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I’ll search for eudicot embryogenesis.

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EUDICOT EMBRYOGENESIS
The stages of Arabidopsis embryogenesis are characterized by precise patterns of cell division. (A) One-cell embryo after the first division of the zygote, which forms the apical and basal cells. (B) Two-cell embryo. (C) Eight-cell embryo. (D) Mid-globular stage, which has developed a distinct protoderm (surface layer). (E) Early heart stage. (F) Late heart stage. (G) Torpedo stage. (H) Mature embryo. (Taiz et al., 2014).

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Since we’re already at it, should we review other concepts involving embryogenesis?

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Game! From what I know, there are two types of patterning that occurs in embryogenesis, namely, axial and radial patterning. Axial patterning in early plant embryos establishes the apical-basal axis which determines the body plan of the adult organism, while radial patterning guides the formation of the three tissue layers (Gilbert, 2000; Wabnik et al., 2013).

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Are you already familiar with how the apical-basal axis is established?

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Yes! Based on what I read from our book, the three-fold elongation of the zygote resulting in its polarization with respect to its intracellular composition is the early manifestation of the apical-basal axis (Taiz et al., 2014). When the zygote undergoes asymmetrical division, a short and cytoplasmically dense apical cell along with a longer and vacuolated basal cell are formed, attributing to the differences in cytoplasmic density of the apical and basal ends. These two cells are also distinguished by their subsequent developmental fates. The smaller apical cell undergoes two longitudinal divisions and a set of transverse divisions, generating the eight-cell (octant) globular embryo, and ultimately the mature plant. On the other hand, the basal cell undergoes a series of transverse divisions producing the filamentous supensor which attaches the embryo to the vascular system of the plant, and the hypophysis which is incorporated into the mature embryo. The latter structure contributes to essential parts of the root apical meristem (e.g., columella, root cap tissues, quiescent center). This whole process of establishing a polarized embryonic axis involves the PIN-mediated auxin transport, a unique directional, cell-to-cell transport mechanism. This is attributed to the role of auxin in establishing the fate of the apical daughter cell of the zygote. Another group of genes, the Wuschel Related Homeobox (WOX) gene family, is implicated in early embryogenesis, with the expression of WOX2 and WOX8 in the zygote. The former is then expressed in the apical cell while the latter is expressed in the basal cell after the zygote undergoes division (De Smet et al., 2010).

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I’m still not familiar with radial axis patterning, though.

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That’s perfect because I have read about it already! In the radial axis which runs perpendicular to the apical-basal axis and extends from the interior to the surface, differences among cells can also be seen (Taiz et al., 2014). The formation of the one-cell thick surface layer known as the protoderm from the outermost cells is one of the earliest patterns observed in the embryogenesis of Arabidopsis (De Smet et al., 2010). The WOX2 knockout mutant specifically affecting the tangential cell divisions in the octant stage as well as the anticlinal cell divisions in the protoderm is a phenotype that is enhanced by knockout of WOX1 and WOX3 or WOX8, and also by knockout of MP (De Smet et al., 2010). Protoderm formation is also accompanied by the establishment of complementary expression domains, being confined to either the protoderm or the inner cells, of previously co-expressed genes (e.g. Arabidopsis Thaliana Meristem Layer 1/ATML1 and Protodermal Factor 2/PDF2 in the protoderm; ZWILLE/ZLL in the inner cells). The protoderm then eventually differentiates into the epidermis, and below it lies the cells that will become the ground tissue which further differentiates into the cortex and the endodermis. The procambium which generates the vascular tissues as well as the pericycle of the root lies in the most central domain.

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I’ll definitely take note of that!

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Now, is there anything else we have to remember for our test?

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I also want to know more about seed dormancy because it’s being talked about in class. I only remember, based on the book written by Taiz et al. (2014), that seed dormancy is the process by which the embryo enters a quiescent stage and dehydrates during the maturation of seeds. Moreover, breakage of seed dormancy is determined through the ABA:GA ratio of the hormone balance theory. Two different types of seed dormancy include primary dormancy and secondary dormancy, which are due to the induction of abscisic acid and unfavorable conditions, respectively.

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Oh yeah, I remember! It was mentioned that dormancy release can occur in different ways such as light, stratification, a period of after-ripening or dry storage room temperature, or exposure to various chemical compounds. Light (photoblasty) occurs through the quick exposure of photoperiod, which is required by small seeds (herbaceous and grassland species). An example would be Betula spp. which require long days to germinate. Seeds that require after ripening before germination occur in plants such as barley (Hordeum vulgare) which take a few weeks in comparison to curly dock (Rumux crispus) which require as long as five years. On the other hand, respiratory inhibitors, sulfhydryl compounds, oxidants, and nitrogenous compounds are some of the chemical compounds that have been found to break dormancy of certain species. Sysymbrium officinale, or hedge mustard, requires nitrate together with light for germination to occur.

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Aside from that, I also remember discussing the mobilization of food reserves and tropism in seed germination. Based on the notes I took down, stored reserves consist of carbohydrates, proteins, or lipids, and are mobilized shortly after germination to give nutrients to the seedling until angiosperm seeds become autotrophic (Bewley & Black, 1994; Pritchard et al., 2002). These are broken down into molecules that are soluble which are then transported to the seedlings. For dicotyledonous seeds, cytokinins found from the embryonic axis are incharge of regulating the breakdown of food reserves (Chapman & Davies, 1983)
In terms of tropism, the starch-statolith hypothesis states that gravity sensing cells, or amylosts, are those that sediment through cytosol due to gravity in the root cap. The removal of the root cap stops gravitropism but the growth is not stopped. The amyloplasts are localized in roots, are also known to be gravisusceptors, and consistently sediments in the columella cells in the root cap (Kawasaki et al., 2008). With this, as the plant develops, the roots are ensured to grow in the direction of the gravitational pull due to gravitropism, aiding in the maximized water intake. On the other hand, phototropism ensures that the seedlings growth is towards the light source, ensuring optimization of photosynthetic light (Liscum et al., 2014).

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I’ll definitely take note of those.

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Wow, we really talked about a lot of things today. I don’t know if I’ll be able to remember everything.

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It was a very informative conversation, very unusual of us to have. LOL. Anyway, don’t worry. You can always go back to this conversation if you need to review. I also compiled the references we used in this conversation for further reading. Just scan this QR code! Be sure to use your UST school email, okay?

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This is amazing. Thank you!

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Thank you for spending your time chatting with me too. I learned a lot today. Good luck to us for the finals!

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Same here. We can do it, bestie!