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COMPARATIVE ULTRASTRUCTURAL STUDY OF THE DEGRADATION IN SOIL OF ISOLATED CUTIN FROM ILEX LEAVES AND MALUS FRUIT
Author(s) -
MACNAMARA O. C.,
BEAKES G. W.,
DICKINSON C. H.
Publication year - 1983
Publication title -
new phytologist
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.742
H-Index - 244
eISSN - 1469-8137
pISSN - 0028-646X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1469-8137.1983.tb03447.x
Subject(s) - cutin , malus , cuticle (hair) , plant cuticle , ultrastructure , botany , cutinase , rosaceae , biology , chemistry , wax , biochemistry , enzyme , genetics
SUMMARY Cutin was dewaxed and removed from leaves of Ilex aquifolium L. (holly) and fruits of Malus pumila Mill, (apple) by a combination of chemical and enzymic techniques. Discs of cutin were then buried in soil under field conditions, retrieved at intervals and examined using electron microscopy. The ultrastructure of cutin before and after burial was compared with that of cuticle of intact holly leaves and apple fruits. Apple cutin was extensively eroded after being buried for 12 months, but neither apple nor holly cutin was completely degraded even after 2 years in soil. The significance of polysaccharide fibrils embedded in the cutin is discussed in relation to the patterns of cutin degradation which were observed and to the distribution of microorganisms in the decaying cutin.