Toward atomic force microscopy and mass spectrometry to visualize and identify lipid rafts in plasmodesmata.

Plant cell-to-cell communication is mediated by nanopores called plasmodesmata (PDs) which are complex structures comprising plasma membrane (PM), highly packed endoplasmic reticulum and numerous membrane proteins. Although recent advances on proteomics have led to insights into mechanisms of transport, there is still an inadequate characterization of the lipidic composition of the PM where membrane proteins are inserted. It has been postulated that PDs could be formed by lipid rafts, however no structural evidence has shown to visualize and analyse their lipid components.