Morphological analysis of vessel elements for systematic study of three Zingiberaceae tribes.

Zingiberaceae containing over 1,000 species that are divided into four subfamilies and six tribes. In recent decades, there has been an increase in the number of studies about vessel elements in families of monocotyledon. However, there are still few studies of Zingiberaceae tribes. This study aims to establish systematic significance of studying vessel elements in two subfamilies and three tribes of Zingiberaceae. The vegetative organs of 33 species processed were analysed by light and scanning electron microscopy and Principal Component Analysis was used to elucidate genera boundaries. Characteristics of vessel elements, such as the type of perforation plate, the number of bars and type of parietal thickening, are proved to be important for establishing the relationship among taxa. Scalariform perforation plate and the scalariform parietal thickening are frequent in Zingiberaceae and may be a plesiomorphic condition for this taxon. In the Principal Component Analysis, the most significant characters of the vessel elements were: simple perforation plates and partially pitted parietal thickening, found only in Alpinieae tribe, and 40 or more bars composing the plate in Elettariopsis curtisii, Renealmia chrysotricha, Zingiber spectabile, Z. officinale, Curcuma and Globba species. Vessel elements characters of 18 species of Alpinieae, Zingibereae and Globbeae were first described in this work.

Large plant samples: how to process for GMA embedding?

It is often necessary to process large plant samples for light microscopy studies, but due to structural characteristics of plant tissues, especially intercellular spaces, large vacuoles, and phenolic substances, results are often unsatisfactory. When large samples are embedded in glycol methacrylate (GMA), their core may not polymerize, remaining soft and moist and making it difficult to cut microtome sections. This situation has been erroneously interpreted as the result of poor infiltration, when the soft core of these samples is actually the result of incomplete polymerization. While GMA is in fact present inside samples, unsatisfactory polymerization results from rapid external polymerization that does not allow sufficient hardener to reach the sample core, while the relatively large volume of GMA inside the tissue block also dilutes the hardener. In this chapter we propose a new method for processing large plant specimens that avoids these problems by: (1) slowing the polymerization process through cooling in order to permit the penetration of hardener into the sample core and (2) increasing the hardener:GMA ratio to aid polymerization of the sample core.

Caracterização anatômica e fitoquímica de folhas e rizomas de Hedychium coronarium J. Kõnig (Zingiberaceae) / Anatomical and phytochemical characterization of leaves and rhizomes from Hedychium coronarium J. Kõnig (Zingiberaceae)

Devido a grande potencialidade na utilização de Hedychium coronarium, na medicina popular e também como biorremediadora no tratamento de efluentes, objetivou-se uma diagnose dos órgãos, folha e rizoma, para elucidar resultados estruturais e fitoquímicos. A folha é anfiestomática, com predominância de estômatos na face abaxial. Em ambas as superfícies foliares há projeções de cera epicuticular sobre as paredes anticlinais das células epidérmicas. O mesofilo dorsiventral apresenta hipoderme multisseriada (3 camadas) em ambos os lados. O parênquima clorofiliano é diferenciado em paliçádico (1-2 camadas) e lacunoso (4-5 camadas) com muitos espaços intercelulares e ocorrência de idioblastos cristalíferos. Na nervura central, o aerênquima ocorre em único arco na região abaxial. Os feixes vasculares distribuem-se aleatoriamente e são de diferentes tamanhos, pequenos, médios e grandes, envolvidos por fibras. Os feixes menores localizam-se no lado abaxial da nervura. A triagem fitoquímica das folhas mostrou a presença de saponinas e ausência de taninos, antraquinonas, alcalóides e flavonóides. Por meio de Cromatografia em Camada Delgada foram identificadas as presenças de cariofileno e mirceno no óleo essencial bruto obtido a partir das folhas de H. coronarium.

Due to the great potentiality regarding the use of Hedychium coronarium in folk medicine and also as a bioremediator in effluent treatment, this study aimed to diagnose leaf and rhizome in order to elucidate structural and phytochemical results. Hedychium coronarium leaf is amphistomatal, with predominance of stomata on the abaxial surface. On both leaf surfaces, there are epicuticular wax projections over the anticlinal walls from epidermal cells. The dorsiventral mesophyll presents multiseriate (3 layers) hypoderm on both sides. The chlorophyllian parenchyma is differentiated into palisade (1-2 layers) and spongy (4-5 layers) with many intercellular spaces and some crystalliferous idioblasts. In the midrib, the aerenchyma occurs in a single arc on the abaxial surface. The vascular bundles are randomly distributed and present different sizes: small, medium and large, involved by fibers. The smallest bundles are found on the abaxial rib surface. The leaf phytochemical analysis showed the presence of saponins and lack of tannins, anthraquinones, alkaloids and flavonoids. Using thin-layer chromatography, the presence of caryophyllene and myrcene was detected in the crude essential oil obtained from H. coronarium leaves.

Anatomía de seis especies de helechos del género Dryopteris (Dryopteridaceae) de México / Anatomy of six species of Dryopteris ferns (Dryopteridaceae) from Mexico

Rhizome and foliar anatomy of the Mexican Dryopteris Adans. species were studied and compared with other Dryopteridaceae and other fern families to identify anatomical features with diagnostic value. The anatomy of rhizome, stipe, and blade is similar in species of the Dryopteris patula complex. The cells with un-lignified, thickened wall, with cap or U-shape around the meristeles belong to the collenchyma, in contrast with other fern families. Dryopteris wallichiana (Spreng.) Hyl. is anatomically distinguished from the other studied species by having more layers of sclerenchyma and meristeles on the stipe, and by the lack of sclereid nests on the rhizome. Dryopteris rossii C. Chr. and D. maxonii Underw. & C. Chr. are characterized by the presence of crystals on the periphery of rhizome nests. D. maxonni and D. wallichiana lack blade glands.

Se estudió la anatomía del rizoma y hoja de especies mexicanas de Dryopteris Adans. y se comparó con la información disponible para Dryopteridaceae y otras familias de helechos en busca de caracteres anatómicos con valor diagnóstico. La anatomía de rizoma, pecíolo y lámina es similar en las especies del complejo Dryopteris patula. Las células con pared engrosada, no lignificada y en forma de casquete o de “U” presentes alrededor de las meristelas corresponden a colénquima, a diferencia de lo informado para otras familias de helechos. Dryopteriswallichiana (Spreng.) Hyl. se distingue anatómicamente de las otras especies estudiadas por presentar un mayor número de capas de esclerénquima y de meristelas en el pecíolo, además de carecer de nidos de esclereidas en el rizoma. Dryopteris rossii y D. maxonii se caracterizan por la presencia de cristales en la periferia de los nidos en el rizoma. Las glándulas en la lámina están ausentes en D. maxonii y D. wallichiana.

[Anatomy of six species of Dryopteris ferns (Dryopteridaceae) from Mexico]. / Anatomía de seis especies de helechos del género Dryopteris (Dryopteridaceae) de México.

Rhizome and foliar anatomy of the Mexican Dryopteris Adans. species were studied and compared with other Dryopteridaceae and other fern families to identify anatomical features with diagnostic value. The anatomy of rhizome, stipe, and blade is similar in species of the Dryopteris patula complex. The cells with un-lignified, thickened wall, with cap or U-shape around the meristeles belong to the collenchyma, in contrast with other fern families. Dryopteris wallichiana (Spreng.) Hyl. is anatomically distinguished from the other studied species by having more layers of sclerenchyma and meristeles on the stipe, and by the lack of sclereid nests on the rhizome. Dryopteris rossii C. Chr. and D. maxonii Underw. & C. Chr. are characterized by the presence of crystals on the periphery of rhizome nests. D. maxonni and D. wallichiana lack blade glands.