The growth of pollen tubes, which depends on actin filaments, is pivotal for plant reproduction. Pharmacological experiments showed that while oryzalin and brefeldin A treatments had no significant effect on the lipid droplets (LDs) trafficking, while 2,3-butanedione monoxime (BDM), latrunculin B, SMIFH2, and cytochalasin D treatments slowed down LDs trafficking, in such a manner that only residual wobbling was observed, suggesting that trafficking of LDs in pollen tube is related to F-actin. While the trafficking of LDs in the wild-type pollen tubes and in myo11-2, myo11b1-1, myo11c1-1, and myo11c2-1 single mutants and myo11a1-1/myo11a2-1 double mutant were normal, their trafficking slowed down in a myosin-XI double knockout (myo11c1-1/myo11c2-1) mutant. These observations suggest that Myo11C1 and Myo11C2 motors are involved in LDs movement in pollen tubes, and they share functional redundancy. Hence, LDs movement in Arabidopsis pollen tubes relies on the actomyosin system.
Keywords: Arabidopsis thaliana; actin; lipid droplets; myosin; pollen tube.