Pollen-Pistil Interaction

The aim of this Special Issue is to highlight the molecular dialogue between the pollen tube and the pistil. This is achieved with original articles and reviews which show how this dialogue is controlled at the genomic and molecular levels. During the angiosperm’s double fertilization, the pollen tube must enter female tissues, bypass numerous physical barriers to reach the micropyle, and release gametes to complete the fertilization process with the final fusion between male and female gametes. There are molecular signals produced by the pistil that are intercepted by the receptors located primarily at the tip of the tube, which generate effects that modulate its growth activity; in turn, the pollen tube releases molecules that determine effects on the pistil cells. Thus, a complex dialogue develops between the female and male counterparts, whose language is made up of an expansive molecular alphabet that includes proteins, glycoproteins, arabinogalactan-proteins, lipid-binding proteins, nanovesicles, ions, amino acids, sugars, hormones, reactive oxygen species (ROS), and modulators of gene expression.