Cell cycle time in the root apical meristem of angiosperms and its dependence on holoploid DNA content

Main conclusion In the angiosperm root apical meristem, the holoploid DNA content is not directly related to cell cycle time. Instead, ploidy, chromosome number, and taxa emerge as key factors that influence this interaction. It is commonly considered that cell cycle time in the angiosperm root apical meristem is directly related to the holoploid DNA content, and this is one of the manifestations of the nucleotypic effect. In this paper, we significantly expanded the previously reported data on cell cycle time using the thymidine method and the rate-of-cell-production method and investigated the nucleotypic effect in different taxonomic groups, in diploids with varying numbers of chromosomes, and in species of different ploidy levels. The nucleotypic effect was most pronounced in diploids with a chromosome number of less than 17, especially in the orders Asparagales and Liliales. In diploids with 17 and a greater number of chromosomes, and in polyploids, the nucleotypic effect was only evident in these two orders and was practically absent in the rest of angiosperms, which have generally lower the holoploid DNA content and average DNA content per chromosome. Overall, our work demonstrates that in angiosperms the relationship between cell cycle time in the root apical meristem and the holoploid DNA content is complex and not homogeneous and it is not directly related to cell cycle time. Instead, ploidy, chromosome number, and taxa emerge as key factors that influence this interaction.