Ovule abortion may lead to the partial or complete reduction of the number of functional ovules in the ovary and then is the primary factor that determines the sexual expression of the plant. In different species, ovule abortion was associated with the presence of callose in advanced ovules. Based on these observations, we studied the pattern of ovule development and callose deposition in both perfect and staminate flowers of the andromonoecious shrub Caesalpinia gilliesii. The obtained results showed that all ovules reached the 8-nucleate stage of embryo sac development and exhibited callose deposition at advanced stages. Nevertheless, from the 2-nucleate stage, a distinct spatial pattern of callose deposition within the ovule was observed between perfect... |