Home About us Contact
|
Home About us Contact | ||
|
|
||
Epicuticular Wax (epicuticular + wax)
Selected AbstractsThe skimmiwallinols,minor components of the epicuticular wax of Cocos nucifera,PHYTOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS, Issue 3 2007Fabiola Escalante-Erosa Abstract Four new skimmiwallinol derivatives, isoskimmiwallinol acetate (4), skimmiwallinol acetate (5), isoskimmiwallinone (6) and skimmiwallinone (7), along with the previously isolated major components isoskimmiwallin (2) and skimmiwallin (3), have been found in the wax extract of pinnae from Cocos nucifera. Metabolites 4 and 5 were obtained as an inseparable mixture and identified by analysis of spectroscopic data and chemical correlation with 2 and 3, respectively. Metabolites 6 and 7 were identified by GC co-injection with the corresponding synthetic derivatives prepared from 4 and 5. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Complex biopolymeric systems at stalk/epicuticular wax plant interfaces: A near infrared spectroscopy study of the sugarcane exampleBIOPOLYMERS, Issue 8 2009Deborah E. Purcell Abstract Naturally occurring macromolecules present at the epicuticular wax/stalk tissue interface of sugarcane were investigated using near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS). Investigations of water, cellulose, and wax-cellulose interrelationships were possible using NIRS methods, where in the past many different techniques have been required. The sugarcane complex interface was used as an example of typical phenomena found at plant leaf/stalk interfaces. This detailed study showed that sugarcane cultivars exhibit spectral differences in the CHn, water OH, and cellulose OH regions, reflecting the presence of epicuticular wax, epidermis, and ground tissue. Spectrally complex water bands (5276 cm,1 and 7500,6000 cm,1) were investigated via freeze-drying experiments which revealed sequentially a complex band substructure (7500,6000 cm,1), a developing weak H-bonding system (,7301 cm,1), and strong H-bonding (,7062 cm,1) assigned to water,cellulose interactions. Principal component analysis techniques clarified complex band trends that developed during the desorption experiment. Bands from wax-free stalk were minimized in the 4327,4080 cm,1 region (CHn vibrational modes associated with long chain fatty compounds), while bands from the stalk tissue (particularly lignin and moisture) became more pronounced. This work is a comprehensive guide to similar studies by scientists involved in a variety of plant and fiber research fields. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Biopolymers 91: 642,651, 2009. This article was originally published online as an accepted preprint. The "Published Online" date corresponds to the preprint version. You can request a copy of the preprint by emailing the Biopolymers editorial office at biopolymers@wiley.com [source] Leaf Water Repellency as an Adaptation to Tropical Montane Cloud Forest EnvironmentsBIOTROPICA, Issue 6 2007Curtis D. Holder ABSTRACT Adaptations that reduce water retention on leaf surfaces may increase photosynthetic capacity of cloud forests because carbon dioxide diffuses slower in water than air. Leaf water repellency was examined in three distinct ecosystems to test the hypothesis that tropical montane cloud forest species have a higher degree of leaf water repellency than species from tropical dry forests and species from temperate foothills-grassland vegetation. Leaf water repellency was measured by calculating the contact angle of the leaf surface and the line tangent to a water droplet through the point of contact on the adaxial and the abaxial surface. Leaf water repellency was significantly different between the three study areas. The hypothesis that leaf water repellency is higher in cloud forest species than tropical dry forests and temperate foothills-grassland vegetation was not confirmed in this study. Leaf water repellency was lower for cloud forest species (adaxial surface = 50.8°; abaxial surface = 82.9°) than tropical dry forest species (adaxial surface = 74.5°; abaxial surface = 87.3°) and temperate foothills-grassland species (adaxial surface = 77.6°; abaxial surface = 95.8°). The low values of leaf water repellency in cloud forest species may be influenced by presence of epiphylls and loss of epicuticular wax on the leaf surfaces. [source] Host plant changes produced by the aphid Sipha flava: consequences for aphid feeding behaviour and growthENTOMOLOGIA EXPERIMENTALIS ET APPLICATA, Issue 2 2002W.L. Gonzáles Abstract Induced plant responses may affect the behaviour and growth of the attacking herbivore insect. The aphid Sipha flava (Forbes) produces reddish spots on the infested leaf of its host plant Sorghum halepense (L.). In order to assess the consequences on the aphid of this presumptive induced plant response, we studied the feeding behaviour and growth of S. flava on previously infested and non-infested leaves of S. halepense. Considering that the reddish pigment could play a defensive role, its effect on aphid survival was determined in artificial diets. In addition, changes in the histology of the leaf and the chemical nature of the induced pigment were also studied. Aphids devoted a significantly shorter total time to non-penetration activities in infested than in non-infested leaves. Time before the first phloem ingestion tended to be shorter in infested leaves. The mean relative growth rate of S. flava nymphs was significantly higher on infested than on non-infested leaves. Survival of aphids on diet containing the reddish extract was not significantly different from that on the control diet. Infestation of S. halepense by S. flava produced a reddish coloration in the leaf, which was identified as an anthocyanin by UV-visible spectrometry. Light microscopy showed that only mesophyll cells of previously infested plants presented swelled, dispersed, and heterogeneously stained chloroplasts with a higher accumulation of starch granules, no grana arranged in stacks, and reduction in the amount of inner membranes (thylakoids), relatively to chloroplasts of non-infested leaves. Scanning electron micrographs of leaf surface revealed reduced presence of crystalline epicuticular waxes of epidermal cells in infested leaves as compared to non-infested ones. The main conclusion is that the attack of S. flava to S. halepense leaves induced plant susceptibility where aphid feeding behaviour and growth were both enhanced on previously infested leaves. [source] Cuticle micromorphology of leaves of Pinus (Pinaceae) from Mexico and Central AmericaBOTANICAL JOURNAL OF THE LINNEAN SOCIETY, Issue 4 2001SUNG SOO WHANG Cuticle micromorphology of 34 taxa of Pinus from Mexico and Central America was studied with scanning electron microscopy, and leaf morphology was described. In total, 29 characters, 22 from the inner cuticular surfaces and seven from the outer, were described in detail. These characters have value either for testing infragenerie classifications or for identifying individual taxa. Characters relating to the periclinal wall texture of the epidermal cells, the shape and degree of development of the anticlinal walls of the epidermal cells, the basal and apical shapes of anticlinal epidermal cell walls, the continuity of the epidermal cells, the size ratio of the polar to lateral subsidiary cells, the grooves on subsidiary cells, the cuticular flanges between guard and subsidiary cells, the groove near the bristles and the elevation of the Florin ring ridge and striations on the Florin ring are particularly useful for infrageneric classification. The agreement between these characters and infrageneric classifications is discussed. Characters relating to the end wall shapes of the epidermal cells, the relative length of epidermal cells, the shape of the stomatal apparatus, the texture of guard and lateral subsidiary cell surfaces, the polar extensions, the number of subsidiary cells and epidermal cell layers between stomatal rows, the integrity of stomatal rows, cell numbers between stomata in a row, cuticular flanges between guard cells, bristle flanges and surface textures, epicuticular waxes, striations on Florin rings and stomatal shapes, contain some important information for identifying Mexican pines. The distribution of the states of each character is compared with that of the Asian pines. Cuticular characters are used to help determine the affinities of taxonomically difficult taxa. [source] | |||||||||||||