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Cell Inclusions

Transmission electron micrograph (TEM) of a transverse section through raphides in a developing leaf of Amorphophallus bulbifer (Araceae). These needle-like crystals have a H-shaped outline which is characteristic of Araceae. Membranes orient the crystals within the cell.

Many plant cells possess non-protoplasmic contents – such as starch granules, calcium oxalate crystals and opaline silica bodies – that form within vacuoles of actively growing cells, usually associated with membrane chambers. Different crystal types include druses (cluster crystals), raphides (bundles of needle-like crystals) and solitary styloid crystals. In some taxonomic groups the type, morphology and location of these structures is of systematic significance. For example, styloids are characteristic of the monocot famiily Iridaceae. Some families possess characteristic silica bodies contained in well-defined cells, either in the epidermis (e.g. in grasses) or in vascular bundle sheath cells (e.g. in palms and orchids). Since these structures are often well-preserved in fossils and subfossils, they are useful as phylogenetic markers. We are reviewing different types of crystals and silica bodies, with current emphasis on monocots, especially Araceae and Poales, and have published our findings in several papers since 1999. An ultrastructural investigation is underway of the development of the unusual grooved needle crystals of Araceae. Our goal is to clarify the systematic and phylogenetic importance of these characters.

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