Cyto-architecture of Byblis glands and leaf cells based on freeze-substitution and conventional TEM.

Background And Aims: Byblis liniflora (Byblidaceae) is a carnivorous plant that has developed sticky fly paper traps with two types of glandular trichomes producing digestive enzymes and sticky mucilage. This study aimed to analyze the ultrastructure of these glandular leaf trichomes based on rapid freeze fixation and conventional chemical fixation in the attempt to understand their functional contribution to the carnivorous performance of the plants.

Methods: The Byblis cells were studied in TEM, SEM and STEM using cryo techniques for fixation and substitution in addition to conventional chemical fixation.

Gland cell responses to feeding in Drosera capensis, a carnivorous plant.

Glands of Drosera absorb and transport nutrients from captured prey, but the mechanism and dynamics remain unclear. In this study, we offered animal proteins in the form of fluorescent albumin (FITC-BSA) and observed the reactions of the glands by live cell imaging and fluorescence microscopy. The ultrastructure of these highly dynamic processes was also assessed in high-pressure frozen and freeze substituted (HPF-FS) cells.