PROTEINS ASSOCIATED WITH REPRODUCTIVE MALE BUD DEVELOPMENT IN PISTACHIO

The development of pistachio (Pistacia vera L.) male inflorescence bud was examined microscopically and by electrophoretic analyses of the proteins at the same developmental stages during microsporogenesis. An Inflorescence Bud Polypeptide, 32 KDa (Ibp32) was identified, it was not found in vegetative buds and leaves. It is a major protein in the dormant bud and it degrades during microsporogenesis. Its concentration in the bud declines significantly at about the tetrad stage in pollen grain development.