The self-incompatibility system of Corylus is a sporophytic type that is phenotypically similar to that of Brassica. While the molecular mechanism of sporophytic self-incompatibility (SSI) has been investigated extensively in Brassica (Brassicaceae), little is known about the corresponding mechanism in Corylus (Betulaceae). Here, we discuss the SSI mechanism with respect to S-locus receptor kinase (SRK) gene homologs. To obtain two SRK candidate unigenes, we compared all of the unigenes in a transcriptional protein database from our previous study with BnSRK-1 (AB270767) using BLASTX with a cutoff e-value of 10(-5). We then cloned the full-length cDNA of ChaSRK1 and ChaSRK2 genes from Ping'ou hybrid hazelnut (Corylus heterophylla x Corylus avellana) using RACE techniques. Bioinformatics approaches were used to analyze the cDNA sequences, protein sequences, and domains of the encoded proteins. The full-length ChaSRK1 cDNA was 2883 base pairs (bp) with a coding sequence (CDS) of 2,547 bp encoding 849 amino acid residues. The full-length ChaSRK2 cDNA was 2,693 bp, with a CDS of 2,433 bp encoding 811 amino acids. The ChaSRK1/2 proteins contained an S-domain (extracellular domain), a transmembrane domain, a Ser/Thr protein kinase active site (kinase domain), and DUF3660 and/or DUF3403 domains. The lengths of 18 partial SRK homologs ranged from 1347 to 1451 bp, and they contained the same structural domains as ChaSRK1 and ChaSRK2. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that all SRK homologs could be divided into two categories that were similar to the classification of SRKs in Brassica. The expression patterns of ChaSRK1 and ChaSRK2 differed: ChaSRK2 was predominantly expressed in mature stigmatic styles, while ChaSRK1 was expressed in other tissues with the highest in the root tips of Corylus. Using dual-color fluorescence in situ hybridization, ChaSRK1/2 expression was found to be localized in papillar cells. Collectively, these results revealed that SRKs from Corylus had similar characteristics to SRKs from Brassica. We therefore speculated that the SSI mechanism in Corylus might be more similar to the Brassica mechanism than to other SSI types.
