Callose, B-1,3-glucan, a component of cell walls, is associated with phloem sieve plates, plasmodesmata, and other cell wall structures that are formed in response to wounding or infection. Callose reacts with aniline blue to form a fluorescent complex that can be recognized in the light microscope with ultraviolet illumination. We have identified callose in cell wall protuberances that are formed spontaneously in suspension-cultured cells of S. tortuosus and in the tips of root hairs formed in sterile callus cultures of S. tortuosus. Callose deposits in root hairs are restricted to root hair tips which appear to be damaged or deformed, while normal root hair tips lack callose deposits. The callose deposits found in suspension culture cells are restricted to regions where unusual outgrowths or protuberances are formed on the cell surfaces, specifically regions that are the sites of new cell wall formation.Callose formation has been shown to be regulated by intracellular calcium levels.
