Fig. 1

Schematic representation of steps involved to induce ovules of Arabidopsis thaliana with Dex. a Single floral buds are gently opened with dissecting needles under the stereomicroscope to allow for a good exposure of the carpel to the induction solution applied with a paint brush with soft hairs. b Plants are kept overnight in a covered tray, laying side-way, to prevent drying. Carpels are sampled at the desired time point following induction for direct microscopy analysis (c1) or for histochemical detection of the GUS reporter serving as induction control before downstream analyses [6] (c2). D Representative examples of induced reporter genes 16hpi: RPS5a >  > nls3xmVenus (top) and RPS5a >  > GUS (bottom)