Annals of Botany 40: 865-875, 1976
© 1976 Annals of Botany Company
RESEARCH-ARTICLE |
An Analysis of Cell Proliferation in the Apical Meristem of Lateral Roots of Vicia faba L.
Department of Plant Biology, University of Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU
Received: 12 June 1975
The relative proportions of the various proliferating and quiescent cells, cell doubling time, mean cycle time and the duration of the mitotic cycle and its various phases as measured from the passage of labelled cells through mitosis have been determined for the initial cells of the cap, epidermis, cortex and stele, for the epidermis together with the cortex and for the stele at various distances basal to the cap-quiescent centre boundary in 1-cm long lateral roots of Vicia faba. Cell doubling time generally increased basally along these tissues as a result of a gradual decrease in the size of the proliferating population of cells. Cycle time of the fast-dividing cell population, however, was less between 750 and 800 µm basal to the cap-quiescent centre boundary than in the corresponding initial cells largely as a result of a decrease in the duration of G1, although changes also took place in the durations of the other phases of the mitotic cycle as cells were displaced basally along the root. From data reported in this paper as well as other results in the literature, it appears that the proportions of quiescent cells arrested in G1 and G2 vary in the different groups of initial cells. Moreover, the proportion arrested in G1 appears to decrease basally along each tissue, while that in G2 increases.