Metal fingerprint of individual pollen cells: trace metal determination by SC-ICP-MS
Résumé
s a key component of the plant’s life cycle since it carries the male gametes for
fecundation. Ensuring an optimal pollen production is crucial for both the fitness of the plant
(i.e. the transmission of its gene pool to the next generation) and the agronomical yield (seed
and/or fruit production). The acquisition and storage of essential metals (Fe, Cu, Zn, Mn…) is
considered to be crucial for the quality of pollen grains. Therefore, it is strategic to develop
analytical approaches to analyze metal homeostasis in pollen grains that are constituted of a
single cell. The quantification of metals in pollen is extremely challenging since the amount of
pollen produced by plants is generally very small. Nevertheless, pollen grains can be easily
collected from flowers, with a high degree of purity. Therefore, this biological material is
particularly well suited to implement single-cell approaches to study metal homeostasis.