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Inflorescence development in a high-altitude annual Mexican teosinte (Poaceae)¹

²Department of Biology, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, Iowa 50614 USA; ³Department of Biological Sciences, Emporia State University, Emporia, Kansas 66801 USA

Some have postulated that highland Mexican maize was derived from an ancient high-altitude teosinte and that later introgression between the two taxa occurred. We used scanning electron microscopy to examine the inflorescence development in both the tassel and ear of a high-altitude Toluca teosinte. One of the most interesting observations was the presence of atypical multiranked orthostiches in the central spike of some male Toluca teosinte inflorescences. Most tassels exhibited a central spike with a pure, four-ranked, tetrastichous phyllotaxy or an intermediate (distichous/tetrastichous) phyllotaxy. A few A₁ tassels had a more typical distichous (two-ranked) central spike. Most ears showed the two-rank condition expected for teosintes. However, three ears displayed an intermediate (distichous/tristichous or distichous/ tetrastichous) phyllotaxy and one ear was tetrastichous. Our analysis of spikelet and floret development in all Toluca inflorescences revealed a pattern similar to that in landrace and U.S. maize, as well as to their close relatives, the teosintes. We suggest that this investigation may reveal inflorescence development in a natural maize-teosinte hybrid. This study further supports our hypothesis that both maleness and femaleness in the Zea inflorescences are derived from a common developmental pathway and underpins a proposal that andropogonoid grasses share a common pattern of inflorescence development.

Key Words: development • inflorescence • Mexico • organogenesis • Poaceae • teosinte • Zea

This article has been cited by other articles:

				A. R. Orr and M. D. Sundberg Inflorescence development in a new teosinte: Zea nicaraguensis (Poaceae) Am. J. Botany, February 1, 2004; 91(2): 165 - 173. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]