• Journal of Plant Biology
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.357-362
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• 1993

To elucidate the origin of secondary growth in the rhizome of B. ternaturn, the developmental changes of vascular cambium was observed in ultrastructural features. The vascular cambium was gradually differentiated from procambium as in seed plants, but the cambial activity did not persist very long so that the cambial cells became a dormant state like fossil cryptogams. Dense cytoplasm of procambial cells became progressively sparse during the growth, and the tiny vesicles were fused to form numerous small vacuoles and then a few large vacuoles. These gradual changes and the occurrence of storage materials which was associated with the developmental stages might support the progressive differentiation of the cambial cells. In addition, the cessation of cambial activity could be indicated by the facts that late vascular cambial cells accumulate large lipid bodies and show very small peripheral cytoplasm and unlikely thickened cell wall, compared to other meristematic cells. Therefore. the vascular cambium showed the characteristics of both seed plants and fossil cryptogams from the view point of cambial ontogeny and activity.tivity.

• Journal of Plant Biology
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.115-119
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• 1995

In order to clarify the relationship between the activity and age of vacular cambium in the rhizome of Botrychium ternatum, the cambia of the 6th and 10th internodes from its shoot apex were compared ultrastructurally and histochemically. The cambium in the 6th internode had two to four radially arranged cells in each row, and the cells are radially flattened and had thiner tangential walls than radial. The cambial cells were ultrastructurally characterlized by the presence of a large vacuole, few storage materials such as starch grains and lipid droplets, and various cell organelles such as mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulums and dictyosomes in cytoplasm. On the other hand, the cells of cambium in the 10th internode showed irregular arangement and somewhat enlargement in radial plane. The cells were filled with numerous storage materials and small vacuoles and had few cell organelles except for mitochondria. In addition, the activity of acid phosphatase appeared in the cambium of the 6th internode but of the 10th. From the above results, it is clear that the vascular cambium of the 6th internode was active and that of the 10th was dormant. Thus we reached a conclusion that the rhizome of '||'&'||'trychium ternatum has determinate cambium.