Fig. 7
Variations in structural characteristics of PSVs in rice seeds with various ploidy levels. Electron microscopy of sub-aleurone cells in 9311 (A–D) and A3 (E–H) developing seeds at 17 DAF. I Thickness of aleurone layer. J Numbers of PSVs per 500 μm2. Data are presented as means ± standard errors of three biological replicates. SG-starch granule; PSV-protein storage vacuole; PB-I-Protein body-I. Significant differences between means of aleurone layer thickness and numbers of PSVs in tetraploid and diploid rice seeds were tested using independent Student’s t-test (∗p < 0.05, ∗∗p < 0.01). Scale bar: 50 μm. Arrows indicate protein body-I. K Temporal expression patterns of PDIL1–1. qRT-PCR analysis of the PDIL1–1 expression level in developing seed endosperms of 9311-2x and 9311-4x (harvested in 2019). The y-axis represents mRNA expression level relative to the β-Actin mRNA level. The x-axis represents day of seed collection after flowering. Significant differences in PDIL transcript levels between 9311-2x and 9311-4x at the same developmental stage were tested using independent Student’s t-test (∗p < 0.05, ∗∗p < 0.01). Values are presented as means ± standard errors (n = 3 biological replicates)