An ABC transporter, OsABCG26, is required for anther cuticle and pollen exine formation and pollen-pistil interactions in rice

- A point mutation affecting the exon-intron splicing in ABC transporter OsABCG26 was identified to cause male sterility in rice.
- OsABCG26 was specifically expressed in anther and pistil.
- osabcg26 mutant plant displayed defects in tapetal cells, Ubisch bodies, pollen exine, anther cuticle, and wild-type pollen tube growth in the mutant pistil.
- The expression levels of several key genes involved in lipid metabolism and transport were significantly altered in osabcg26 anther.

Wax, cutin and sporopollenin are essential components for the formation of the anther cuticle and the pollen exine, respectively. Their lipid precursors are synthesized by secretory tapetal cells and transported to the anther and microspore surface for deposition. However, the molecular mechanisms involved in the formation of the anther cuticle and pollen exine are poorly understood in rice. Here, we characterized a rice male sterile mutant osabcg26. Molecular cloning and sequence analysis revealed a point mutation in the gene encoding an ATP binding cassette transporter G26 (OsABCG26). OsABCG26 was specifically expressed in the anther and pistil. Cytological analysis revealed defects in tapetal cells, lipidic Ubisch bodies, pollen exine, and anther cuticle in the osabcg26 mutant. Expression of some key genes involved in lipid metabolism and transport, such as UDT1, WDA1, CYP704B2, OsABCG15, OsC4 and OsC6, was significantly altered in osabcg26 anther, possibly due to a disturbance in the homeostasis of anther lipid metabolism and transport. Additionally, wild-type pollen tubes showed a growth defect in osabcg26 pistils, leading to low seed setting in osabcg26 cross-pollinated with the wild-type pollen. These results indicated that OsABCG26 plays an important role in anther cuticle and pollen exine formation and pollen-pistil interactions in rice.