Figure 3
Selection of developmental stage and organ specific marker genes. Identification of putative marker genes was performed by selecting some of those differentially expressed in the microarray analyses and further validated by means of qRT-PCR. This detailed expression profiling allowed the selection of those genes that best fitted the ideal marker characteristics as indicated in the Methods section. Expression profiles of 50 genes were measured in seed and mesocarp at five different developmental stages (S1 to S4). Expression values, as indicated in the insert, are related to the highest expression of each gene (100% blue). Genes have been manually ordered according to their expression profiles. Grey shading highlights genes selected as markers.