Emiliano Jozami and James McD. Stewart. University of Arkansas, CSES, PTSC 115, Fayetteville, AR 72701
G. armourianum, a wild new world species related to cotton, has red pigmentation caused by the presence of anthocyanins in the anther wall. Usually this trait is controlled by one flavonoid structural gene that activates the pathway. The red color has been introgressed into G. hirsutum and is present in anther walls of young flower buds 3-4 mm in length and remains until anthesis (R. W. Miles, JR). If the gene controlling expression of the red anther trait can be identified, it may be possible to introduce a toxin gene downstream of its promoter that would be expressed only in exterior anther cells. This presentation will cover the isolation of the gene controlling red anther expression in G. hirsutum.