Exploring development of Ceropegia sandersonii pitfall flowers to elucidate convergent evolution of floral synorganization

The aims of this project were to investigate the genetic background of pitfall flower development in Ceropegia, and to explore (i) convergent evolution of extremely synorganized and complex flowers as well as (ii) the homology of a highly specialized floral organ, the gynostegial corona. We used transcriptomes from C. sandersonii early floral buds and mature sepals, petals, and gynostegia, and analyzed differential expression of selected MADS-box genes in buds and mature floral organs using RT-PCR.