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Quantification of microfibril angle in secondary cell walls at subcellular resolution by means of polarized light microscopy
Author(s) -
Abraham Yael,
Elbaum Rivka
Publication year - 2013
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/nph.12070
Subject(s) - microfibril , cell wall , cellulose , microscopy , materials science , resolution (logic) , microrheology , biophysics , polarized light microscopy , electron microscope , secondary cell wall , crystallography , optics , chemistry , botany , composite material , biology , rheology , biochemistry , physics , artificial intelligence , computer science
Summary The cell walls constitute the mechanical support of plants. Crystalline cellulose building the walls forms rigid microfibrils that set the stiffness of the cell and the direction in which it expands during growth. Therefore, the determination of the directions of the microfibrils is important in both mechanical and developmental assays. We adapted polarized light microscopy to estimate the cellulose microfibril orientations at subcellular resolution. The optical information supplements X ‐ray scattering data, R aman microspectroscopy, and electron microscopy. We analyzed samples from three plant tissues: cells from an A raucaria excels branch, in which we revealed lower cellulose density in regions where the cell wall curvature becomes bigger, namely, the cell wall corners; a wheat ( T riticum turgidum ) awn's hygroscopically active region, which revealed a gradient in the cellulose microfibril angles that spans across four cell rows; and a stork's bill's ( E rodium gruinum ) coiling awn, which revealed that the cellulose in the cell wall is organized in two orientations seamed together, rather than in a continuous helix. The unique spatial information is easily obtained from microscopic specimens and further illuminates new aspects in the mechanical tissues.