Includes abstract. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 131-169). / The ability of tissues to survive almost complete loss of cellular water is a trait found throughout the plant kingdom. While this desiccation tolerance is common in seeds of most angiosperms it is rare in their vegetative tissues. Xerophyta humilis (Bak.) Dur and Schintz belongs to a small group of resurrection angiosperms and it possesses the ability to withstand extreme desiccation of greater than 90% in both its seeds and vegetative tissues and return to active metabolism upon rehydration. We have tested the hypothesis that vegetative desiccation tolerance in angiosperms has evolved as an adaptation of seed desiccation tolerance.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:uct/oai:localhost:11427/4349 |
| Date | January 2008 |
| Creators | Walford, Sally-Ann |
| Contributors | Illing, Nicola, Farrant, Jill M, Denby, Katherine J |
| Publisher | University of Cape Town, Faculty of Science, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Doctoral Thesis, Doctoral, PHD |
| Format | application/pdf |
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