Meiotic Studies, Pollen Fertility and Seed Set of Trillium govanianum, an Endangered Endemic Plant Species of the Himalaya

Detailed knowledge about the meiotic behavior of threatened plant species is crucial to develop successful conservation strategies. Here we provide a detailed account of the male meiotic behavior of Trillium govanianum Wall ex. D. Don—an endangered endemic medicinal plant species of the Himalaya. We collected the plant material from the Bangus valley of the Kashmir Himalaya. The species showed chromosome number n=2x=10, which is the first gametophytic report for this species. The pollen fertility was found to be in the range of 88–90%. The reduced fertility was due to the meiotic abnormalities such as chromatin stickiness, a late disjunction of bivalents, chromatin bridges, formation of laggards, and polysporads with micronuclei. The seed set was found to be 65.85%. The reduced seed set might be attributed to the presence of various meiotic abnormalities observed.