| Abstract Detail
Developmental and Structural Section Nowak, Julia [1], Dengler, Nancy G. [2], Posluszny, U [1]. The role of abscission during leaflet separation in Chamaedorea elegans. Leaf development in the palm family (Arecaceae) is unlike any observed in other angiosperms. The objectives of this study were to follow leaf ontogeny in Chamaedorea elegans and to determine whether abscission plays a role in leaflet separation. Although previous studies indicated that abscission may be a mechanism by which leaflets separate, details of the process are lacking. The results of our ontogenetic study show that leaflet separation in C. elegans occurs in three steps that act together to produce the mature leaflets of a pinnate leaf. Young palm leaf primordia that have a hood-shaped appearance develop plications at an early stage of development through differential growth. The plications then separate and develop into leaflets through, first, schizogeny in the direction of the abaxial ridge, which allows for the second step, mechanical rupture, to take place. The cells at the fully separated leaflet margins show the deposition of protective properties as the third step, before mechanical separation. Since these processes are present in "typical" abscission, we propose that leaflet separation in C. elegans occurs by an "abscission-like process".
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1 - University of Guelph, Molecular and Cellular Biology, Guelph, Ontario, N1G 2W1, Canada
2 - University of Toronto, Department of Botany, 25 Willcocks Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 3B2, Canada
Keywords:
Arecaceae
Leaf development
leaflet separation
Abscission
Chamaedorea elegans.
Presentation Type: Oral Paper:Papers for Sections
Session: CP39
Location: Boulevard C/Hilton
Date: Tuesday, July 10th, 2007
Time: 4:00 PM
Number: CP39001
Abstract ID:930 |
