We examined the leaf hydraulic design in 10 species based on their rehydration kinetics. In all cases, a biphasic response described the temporal pattern of water uptake, with time constants of approximately 30 to 800 s and approximately 800 to 8000 s. The time constants of the fast phase were significantly shorter in the six angiosperms (30 to 110 s) compared with the two single-veined conifer...

Lotus leaves have become an icon for superhydrophobicity and self-cleaning surfaces, and have led to the concept of the 'Lotus effect'. Although many other plants have superhydrophobic surfaces with almost similar contact angles, the lotus shows better stability and perfection of its water repellency. Here, we compare the relevant properties such as the micro- and nano-structure, the chemical c...

This paper proposes a methodology for plant analysis and identification based on extracting texture features from microscopic images of leaf epidermis. All the experiments were carried out using 32 plant species with 309 epidermal samples captured by an optical microscope coupled to a digital camera. The results of the computational methods using texture features were compared to the convention...

Stomata open at the leaf epidermis, driven by solute accumulation in the surrounding guard cells. Transmembrane ion transport has long been recognised to contribute to this process. A new study makes it clear that guard cells also metabolise starch to accelerate opening.

New evidence is provided regarding the direct effect of light on stomatal opening in the epidermis of the pea (Pisum sativum L. var Little Marvel) leaf. Light modulates the activity of a number of key enzymes involved in stomatal metabolism. When isolated epidermal strips are illuminated, phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase, NADP-malate dehydrogenase, and NADP-isocitrate dehydrogenase are activated...

When stomata of isolated epidermis of Vicia faba are allowed to open in the presence of K(+) and iminodiacetate (an impermeant zwitterion), malate is formed in the epidermis; the increases in malate content follow a nearly linear relationship with stomatal aperture. Stomata of leaf sections of V. faba floated on water during opening also exhibit this relationship. When isolated epidermis is off...

The role of LAM1 in dorsoventrality and lateral growth of the leaf blade was investigated in the 'bladeless' lam1 mutant of Nicotiana sylvestris and in periclinal chimeras with lam1 and wild-type (N. glauca) cell layers. Mutant lam1 primordia show normal dorsoventrality at emergence, but produce blade tissue that lacks dorsal cell types and fails to expand in the lateral plane. In leaves of a l...

New evidence is provided regarding the direct effect of light on stomatal opening in the epidermis of the pea (Pisum sativwn L. var Little Marvel) leaf. Lght modulates the activity of a number of key enzymes involved in stomatal metabolism. When Isolated epidermal strips are illuminated, phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase, NADP-malate dehydrogenase, and NADP-isocltrate debydrogenase are activated;...