Knockdown of MYB305 disrupts nectary starch metabolism and floral nectar production

MYB transcription factors have important roles during floral organ development. In this study, we generated myb305 RNAi knockdown tobacco plants and studied the role of MYB305 in the growth of the floral nectary. We have previously shown the MYB305 regulates the expression of flavonoid metabolic genes as well as of nectar proteins (nectarins); however, the myb305 plants showed other floral phenotypes that we investigate in these studies. The nectaries of myb305 plants show juvenile character at late stages of development and secrete reduced levels of nectar. Because starch metabolism is intimately involved in nectar secretion and is strongly regulated during normal nectary development, we examined the accumulation of starch in the nectaries of the myb305 plants. The myb305 plants accumulated lower levels of starch in their nectaries than did wild-type plants. The reduced starch correlated with the reduced expression of the ATP-glucose pyrophosphorylase (small subunit) gene in nectaries of the myb305 plants during the starch biosynthetic phase. Expression of genes encoding several starch-degrading enzymes including β-amylase, isoamylase 3, and α-amylase was also reduced in the myb305 plants. In addition to regulating nectarin and flavonoid metabolic gene expression, these results suggest that MYB305 may also function in the tobacco nectary maturation program by controlling the expression of starch metabolic genes.