scholarly journals Calcium Oxalate Crystals in Leaves of the Extremophile Plant Colobanthus quitensis (Kunth) Bartl. (Caryophyllaceae)

Plants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 1787
Author(s):  
Olman Gómez-Espinoza ◽  
Daniel González-Ramírez ◽  
Jairo Méndez-Gómez ◽  
Rossy Guillén-Watson ◽  
Alejandro Medaglia-Mata ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Calcium Oxalate ◽  
Polarized Light ◽  
Common Garden ◽  
Ecotypic Differentiation ◽  
Colobanthus Quitensis ◽  
Precise Knowledge ◽  
Caox Crystal ◽  
Crystal Accumulation ◽  
The Antarctic

The presence of calcium oxalate (CaOx) crystals has been widely reported in the plant kingdom. These structures play a central role in various physiological functions, including calcium regulation, metal detoxification, and photosynthesis. However, precise knowledge about their possible roles and functions in plants is still limited. Therefore, the present work aims to study the ecotypic variability of Colobanthus quitensis, an extremophile species, concerning CaOx crystal accumulation. The CaOx crystals were studied in leaves of C. quitensis collected from different provenances within a latitudinal gradient (From Andes mountains in central Chile to Antarctica) and grown under common garden conditions. Polarized light microscopy, digital image analysis, and electron microscopy were used to characterize CaOx crystals. The presence of CaOx crystals was confirmed in the four provenances of C. quitensis, with significant differences in the accumulation among them. The Andean populations presented the highest accumulation of crystals and the Antarctic population the lowest. Electron microscopy showed that CaOx crystals in C. quitensis are classified as druses based on their morphology. The differences found could be linked to processes of ecotypic differentiation and plant adaptation to harsh environments.

Identification of calcium oxalate crystals in dried or fixed tobacco leaf

1984 ◽  
Vol 42 ◽  
pp. 288-289
Author(s):  
Vicki L. Baliga ◽  
Mary Ellen Counts
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Scanning Electron Microscopy ◽  
Calcium Oxalate ◽  
Growth And Development ◽  
Polarized Light ◽  
Calcium Oxalate Crystals ◽  
X Ray Diffraction ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
Scanning Electron

Calcium is an important element in the growth and development of plants and one form of calcium is calcium oxalate. Calcium oxalate has been found in leaf seed, stem material plant tissue culture, fungi and lichen using one or more of the following methods—polarized light microscopy (PLM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and x-ray diffraction.Two methods are presented here for qualitatively estimating calcium oxalate in dried or fixed tobacco (Nicotiana) leaf from different stalk positions using PLM. SEM, coupled with energy dispersive x-ray spectrometry (EDS), and powder x-ray diffraction were used to verify that the crystals observed in the dried leaf with PLM were calcium oxalate.

scholarly journals Decomposition of Calcium Oxalate Crystals in Colobanthus quitensis under CO2 Limiting Conditions

Plants ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 1307
Author(s):  
Olman Gómez-Espinoza ◽  
Daniel González-Ramírez ◽  
Panagiota Bresta ◽  
George Karabourniotis ◽  
León A. Bravo
Keyword(s):  
Calcium Oxalate ◽  
Electron Transport Rate ◽  
Relative Size ◽  
Oxalate Oxidase ◽  
Stress Factors ◽  
Calcium Oxalate Crystals ◽  
Colobanthus Quitensis ◽  
Diffusion Limitations ◽  
Co2 Diffusion ◽  
The Antarctic

Calcium oxalate (CaOx) crystals are widespread among plant species. Their functions are not yet completely understood; however, they can provide tolerance against multiple environmental stress factors. Recent evidence suggested that CaOx crystals function as carbon reservoirs since its decomposition provides CO2 that may be used as carbon source for photosynthesis. This might be advantageous in plants with reduced mesophyll conductance, such as the Antarctic plant Colobanthus quitensis, which have shown CO2 diffusion limitations. In this study, we evaluate the effect of two CO2 concentrations in the CaOx crystals decomposition and chlorophyll fluorescence of C. quitensis. Plants were exposed to airflows with 400 ppm and 11.5 ppm CO2 and the number and relative size of crystals, electron transport rate (ETR), and oxalate oxidase (OxO) activity were monitored along time (10 h). Here we showed that leaf crystal area decreases over time in plants with 11.5 ppm CO2, which was accompanied by increased OxO activity and only a slight decrease in the ETR. These results suggested a relation between CO2 limiting conditions and the CaOx crystals decomposition in C. quitensis. Hence, crystal decomposition could be a complementary endogenous mechanism for CO2 supply in plants facing the Antarctic stressful habitat.

High Voltage Electron Microscopy of Ion-Milled Dental Enamel

1974 ◽  
Vol 32 ◽  
pp. 60-61
Author(s):  
L. D. Ackerman ◽  
S. H. Y. Wei
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
High Voltage ◽  
Third Molar ◽  
Polarized Light ◽  
Dental Enamel ◽  
Longitudinal Section ◽  
Ion Milling ◽  
High Voltage Electron Microscopy ◽  
Voltage Electron ◽  
High Voltage Electron

Mature human dental enamel has presented investigators with several difficulties in ultramicrotomy of specimens for electron microscopy due to its high degree of mineralization. This study explores the possibility of combining ion-milling and high voltage electron microscopy as a means of circumventing the problems of ultramicrotomy.A longitudinal section of an extracted human third molar was ground to a thickness of about 30 um and polarized light micrographs were taken. The specimen was attached to a single hole grid and thinned by argon-ion bombardment at 15° incidence while rotating at 15 rpm. The beam current in each of two guns was 50 μA with an accelerating voltage of 4 kV. A 20 nm carbon coating was evaporated onto the specimen to prevent an electron charge from building up during electron microscopy.

Identification of Nd163 phase in melt-textured NdBa2Cu3O7−δ bulk samples

2003 ◽  
Vol 18 (9) ◽  
pp. 2050-2054 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcello Gombos ◽  
Vicente Gomis ◽  
Anna Esther Carrillo ◽  
Antonio Vecchione ◽  
Sandro Pace ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Scanning Electron Microscopy ◽  
Optical Microscopy ◽  
Room Temperature ◽  
Polarized Light ◽  
Energy Dispersive ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Spontaneous Formation ◽  
The Stability ◽  
Scanning Electron

In this work, we report on the observation of Nd1Ba6Cu3O10,5 (Nd163) phase of the NdBaCuO system in melt-textured Nd123 bulk samples grown from a mixture of Nd123 and Nd210 phase powders. The observation was performed with polarized light optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy–energy dispersive x-ray analyses. Images of the identified phase crystals show an aspect quite different from Nd422 crystals. Unexpectedly, Nd163 was individuated, even in “pure” Nd123 samples. Moreover, after long exposure to air, Nd163 disappeared completely in samples synthesized from powders containing Nd210. Thermogravimetry analyses of powders show that the stability of this phase in air is limited to temperatures higher than 900 °C, so Nd163 is unstable and highly reactive at room temperature. Moreover, an explanation of the observation of Nd163 in Nd210 free samples, based on the spontaneous formation of Nd163 phase in a Nd123 melt, is proposed.

scholarly journals Asymmetric responses to simulated global warming by populations of Colobanthus quitensis along a latitudinal gradient

PeerJ ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. e3718 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian S. Acuña-Rodríguez ◽  
Cristian Torres-Díaz ◽  
Rasme Hereme ◽  
Marco A. Molina-Montenegro
Keyword(s):  
Global Warming ◽  
Latitudinal Gradient ◽  
Biomass Accumulation ◽  
South Shetland Islands ◽  
Plant Populations ◽  
Colobanthus Quitensis ◽  
Growing Seasons ◽  
Long Term Experiment ◽  
Foliar Traits ◽  
The Antarctic

The increase in temperature as consequence of the recent global warming has been reported to generate new ice-free areas in the Antarctic continent, facilitating the colonization and spread of plant populations. Consequently, Antarctic vascular plants have been observed extending their southern distribution. But as the environmental conditions toward southern localities become progressively more departed from the species’ physiological optimum, the ecophysiological responses and survival to the expected global warming could be reduced. However, if processes of local adaptation are the main cause of the observed southern expansion, those populations could appear constrained to respond positively to the expected global warming. Using individuals from the southern tip of South America, the South Shetland Islands and the Antarctic Peninsula, we assess with a long term experiment (three years) under controlled conditions if the responsiveness of Colobanthus quitensis populations to the expected global warming, is related with their different foliar traits and photoprotective mechanisms along the latitudinal gradient. In addition, we tested if the release of the stress condition by the global warming in these cold environments increases the ecophysiological performance. For this, we describe the latitudinal pattern of net photosynthetic capacity, biomass accumulation, and number of flowers under current and future temperatures respective to each site of origin after three growing seasons. Overall, was found a clinal trend was found in the foliar traits and photoprotective mechanisms in the evaluated C. quitensis populations. On the other hand, an asymmetric response to warming was observed for southern populations in all ecophysiological traits evaluated, suggesting that low temperature is limiting the performance of C. quitensis populations. Our results suggest that under a global warming scenario, plant populations that inhabiting cold zones at high latitudes could increase in their ecophysiological performance, enhancing the size of populations or their spread.

scholarly journals PHOTORECEPTOR STRUCTURES

1957 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 441-448 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. J. Wolken ◽  
J. Capenos ◽  
A. Turano
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Polarized Light ◽  
Plant Cells ◽  
House Fly ◽  
Structural Detail ◽  
Thin Sections ◽  
Retinal Rods ◽  
Single Structure ◽  
Vertebrate Eye ◽  
Insect Eye

The eyes of three eye mutants of Drosophila melanogaster were fixed and thin sections studied for its structural detail in the electron microscope. Each ommatidium was found to have seven retinula cells with an equal number of rhabdomeres (visual units). The rhabdomeres average 1.2 µ in diameter and 60 µ in length. Each rhabdomere consists of osmium-fixed dense bands averaging 120 A in thickness, and with less dense interspaces 200 to 400 A. There is an average of 23 dense bands or 46 interfaces per micron within the rhabdomere. The rhabdomere as we have presented it is a single structure of packed rods or tubes. The "fine structure" within the rhabdomere is similar to that observed by electron microscopy for the retinula of the house fly, and to the retinal rods of the vertebrate eye, and to the chloroplasts of plant cells in a variety of animal and plant photoreceptor structures. In addition, the radial arrangements within the ommatidium of radially unsymmetrical units, the rhabdomeres, is probably related to the analysis of polarized light in the insect eye.

Wood identification of charcoal with 3D-reflected light microscopy

IAWA Journal ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (4) ◽  
pp. 478-489 ◽  
Author(s):  
Valentina Zemke ◽  
Volker Haag ◽  
Gerald Koch
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Scanning Electron Microscopy ◽  
Light Microscopy ◽  
Field Emission ◽  
Polarized Light ◽  
Structural Features ◽  
Light Illumination ◽  
Reflected Light ◽  
Carbonized Wood ◽  
Scanning Electron

Abstract The present study focusses on the application of 3D-reflected light microscopy (3D-RLM) for the wood anatomical identification of charcoal specimens produced from domestic and tropical timbers. This special microscopic technique offers a detailed investigation of anatomical features in charcoal directly compared with the quality of field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM). The advantages of using the 3D-RLM technology are that fresh fracture planes of charcoal can be directly observed under the microscope without further preparation or surface treatment. Furthermore, the 3D-technique with integrated polarized light illumination creates high-contrast images of uneven and black charcoal surfaces. Important diagnostic structural features such as septate fibres and intercellular canals can be clearly detected and intervessel pits are directly measured. The comparison of the microscopic analyses reveals that 3D-reflected light microscopy (3D-RLM) provides an effective alternative technique to conventional field emission scanning electron microscopy for the identification of carbonized wood.

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