Abstract

Autocrine signaling pathways regulated by RAPID ALKALINIZATION FACTORs (RALFs) control cell wall integrity during pollen tube germination and growth in Arabidopsis. To investigate the role of pollen-specific RALFs in another plant species, we combined gene expression data with phylogenetic and biochemical studies to identify candidate orthologs in maize. We show that Clade IB ZmRALF2/3 mutants, but not that of Clade III ZmRALF1/5 caused cell wall instability in the sub-apical region of the growing pollen tube. ZmRALF2/3 are mainly located to the cell wall and are partially able to complement the pollen germination defect of their Arabidopsis orthologs AtRALF4/19. Mutations in ZmRALF2/3 compromise pectin distribution pattern leading to altered cell wall thickness, hyperphosphorylation of ZmPEX cell wall proteins and pollen tube burst. Clade IB, but not Clade III ZmRALFs are capable to interact with pollen-specific CrRLK1L receptor kinases ZmFERL4/7/9 and GPI-anchored co-receptors ZmLLG1/2 at similar binding affinities. In contrast, binding affinity to ZmPEX2/4 cell wall proteins is about five times higher. Based on these data, we now propose a dosage-dependent model showing how Clade IB RALFs act as extracellular sensors to regulate cell wall integrity and thickness during pollen tube growth in plants. One sentence summaryPollen-specific RALFs interact at different binding affinities with receptor kinases, GPI-anchored proteins and cell wall proteins to regulate cell wall integrity during pollen tube growth in maize.