Fig. 3

Underlying molecular developmental genetics of a highly giant flower in Sapria himalayana. A Phylogenetic tree of the MIKC-type MADS-box gene family. Genes from S. himalayana and Rafflesia cantleyi are highlighted in red and brown colors, respectively. The numbers of genes were also shown and coloured according to the species colour scheme. Species names are abbreviated as follows: Arabidopsis thaliana (Atha), Manihot esculenta (Mesc), Populus trichocarpa (Ptri), R. cantleyi (Rcan), and S. himalayana (Shim). BS > 50% are shown. B, C Heatmap showing the log2-tranformed (left) and z-score transformed (right) gene expression values in flower tissues in S. himalayana and R. cantleyi, respectively. Disk♂, Disk with stamens. S1, floral bud is made up of undifferentiated masses of cells; S2, floral bud contains moderately differentiated and visible internal organs; S3, floral bud consists of more developed internal organs. D, E Genes involved in the regulation of petal growth. Genes promoting/inhibiting cell proliferation and expansion in petal were summarized in A. thaliana. Arrows and T-ends represent promoting and inhibiting genetic interactions, respectively (D); Heatmap showing the z-score transformed gene expression data, upper section from flower tissues of S. himalayana, and lower section from three different flower development stages of R. cantleyi (E). ‘-’ represents absence