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The Production and Protection of Nectars

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Progress in Botany

Part of the book series: Progress in Botany ((BOTANY,volume 74))

Abstract

Nectar secretion serves two important mutualisms. Floral nectar (FN) mediates pollination whereas extrafloral nectar (EFN) serves the indirect defence against herbivores. Research over the last decade has focused on the anti-microbial protection of nectars. The Nectar Redox Cycle consists of several nectar proteins (nectarins) in FN of ornamental tobacco and produces reactive oxygen species that keep the nectar free of microbes. Hydrolytic enzymes such as chitinases, glucanases and other pathogenesis-related (PR) proteins serve the same protective function in FN and EFN of different species, although via different biochemical mechanisms. By contrast, little is known about how nectaries are formed, where nectar components are produced and how nectar flow is controlled. Genes with a central role in flower development and nectary formation are CRABS CLAW (CRC) and BLADE-ON-PETIOLE (BOP) 1 and 2, but more studies are required to understand the genetic control of nectary formation and the mechanisms by which plants control nectar flow and composition.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Ingeniería Genética, CINVESTAV—Irapuato, Km. 9.6 Libramiento Norte, CP 36821, Irapuato, Guanajuato, México

    María Escalante-Pérez & Martin Heil

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  1. María Escalante-Pérez
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  2. Martin Heil
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Correspondence to Martin Heil .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Inst. Botanik, TU Darmstadt, Schnittspahnstr. 3, Darmstadt, 64287, Germany

    Ulrich Lüttge

  2. Faculty of Biologie, Experimental Ecology and, University of Bielefeld, Bielefeld, Germany

    Wolfram Beyschlag

  3. , School of Biological Sciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, CF10 3TL, United Kingdom

    Dennis Francis

  4. , MS330/Department of Biochemistry, University of Nevada, Virginia Street 1664 N., Reno, 89557-0330, Nevada, USA

    John Cushman

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Escalante-Pérez, M., Heil, M. (2013). The Production and Protection of Nectars. In: Lüttge, U., Beyschlag, W., Francis, D., Cushman, J. (eds) Progress in Botany. Progress in Botany, vol 74. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-30967-0_9

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