This thesis presents an investigation into the development of plasmodesmata (PD), which are specialised pores in plant cell walls through which the cytosol and membranes of neighbouring cells are linked. Modification of PD from their initial single-tube (‘simple’) structures to branched (‘complex’) structures is an important part of tissue maturation as it allows cells to restrict the movement of syplasmically mobile molecules including hormones, RNAs and proteins. Conversion of PD from simple to complex is co-ordinated across large populations of cells to produce symplasmic domains, transport barriers, and preferential transport pathways. The development of PD is therefore intrinsic to the wider development and morphogenesis of cells, tissues, and organs. The aim of this project was to investigate the development of PD from simple to complex, particularly during the predictable, large-scale conversion of PD structure that accompanies the leaf transition from sink state to source. To study this I used transgenic plants expressing a GFP-tagged viral protein which accumulates specifically in complex PD, while leaving simple PD unlabelled. The project follows the development of complex PD from the early stages of leaf development to maturity using a range of microscopy techniques. Structured illumination microscopy was used to view labelled PD at super resolution, which gave new structural details about complex PD using a breakthrough technology. Conventional and high-throughput confocal and electron microscopy were used to localise PD within tissues in a broad survey of PD location in leaves to identify patterns of PD development. An imaging chamber was developed that allowed the development of complex PD to be viewed in real time and identified conditions that can trigger structural conversion of PD. Finally, a high-throughput microscopy study was performed to identify how hormones, sugar availability, environmental stresses, defence responses and inhibitors can affect PD development.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:578358 |
| Date | January 2012 |
| Creators | Fitzgibbon, Jessica |
| Contributors | Oparka, Karl; Jeffree, Chris |
| Publisher | University of Edinburgh |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://hdl.handle.net/1842/7661 |
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