Low Temperature Affects Pattern of Leaf Growth and Structure of Cell Walls in Winter Oilseed Rape (Brassica napus L., var. oleifera L.)

• Published in: Annals of botany Vol. 84; no. 3; pp. 313 - 319
• Main Authors: STEFANOWSKA, MARZANNA, KURAŚ, MIECZYSŁAW, KUBACKA-ZEBALSKA, MARIA, KACPERSKA, ALINA
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Science Ltd 01-09-1999; Oxford University Press; Academic Press Limited; Oxford Publishing Limited (England)
• Subjects: Acclimation; Acclimation, Brassica napus var. oleifera, cell wall ultrastructure, cold, freezing, leaf structure, winter oilseed rape; Acclimatization; air temperature; Brassica napus; Brassica napus var. napus; Brassica napus var. oleifera; cell growth; cell wall components; cell wall ultrastructure; Cell walls; cold; dark; Epidermal cells; Epidermis; Freezing; frost; growth; leaf structure; Leaves; mesophyll; Mesophyll cells; Oilseeds; plant anatomy; Plant growth; Plants; shape; thickness; winter oilseed rape; Acclimation, Brassica napus var. oleifera, cell wall ultrastructure, cold, freezing, leaf structure, winter oilseed rape
• ISSN: 0305-7364; 1095-8290
• DOI: 10.1006/anbo.1999.0924

Three-week acclimation of winter oilseed rape (Brassica napus L. var. oleifera L.) plants in the cold (2 °C) resulted in a modified pattern of leaf cell enlargement, indicated by the increased thickness of young leaf blades and modified dimensions of mesophyll cells, as compared with non-acclimated tissues grown at 20/15 °C (day/night). The thickness of leaf cell walls also increased markedly during cold acclimation but it decreased in response to a transient freezing event (5 °C for 18 h followed by 6 or 24 h at 2 °C, in the dark). Cell walls of the upper (adaxial) epidermis were most affected. Their ultrastructure was modified by cold and freezing treatments in different ways, as revealed by electron microscopy. Possible reasons for the cold- and freezing-induced modifications in the leaf and cell wall morphology and their role in plant acclimation to low temperature conditions are discussed.