Druse_(botany)

Druse (botany)

A druse is a group of crystals of calcium oxalate,[1] silicates, or carbonates present in plants, and are thought to be a defense against herbivory due to their toxicity. Calcium oxalate (Ca(COO)2, CaOx) crystals are found in algae, angiosperms and gymnosperms in a total of more than 215 families. These plants accumulate oxalate in the range of 3–80% (w/w) of their dry weight[2][3] through a biomineralization process in a variety of shapes.[4] Araceae have numerous druses, multi-crystal druses and needle-shaped raphide crystals of CaOx present in the tissue.[5] Druses are also found in leaves and bud scales of Prunus, Rosa,[6] Allium, Vitis, Morus and Phaseolus.[7][8]

Druses in onion scales (100x magnification)

Formation

A number of biochemical pathways for calcium oxalate biomineralization in plants have been proposed. Among these are the cleavage of isocitrate, the hydrolysis of oxaloacetate, glycolate/glyoxylate oxidation, and/or oxidative cleavage of L-ascorbic acid.[9] The cleavage of ascorbic acid appears to be the most studied pathway.[10][11][12][13] The specific mechanism controlling this process is unclear but it has been suggested that a number of factors influence crystal shape and growth, such as proteins, polysaccharides, and lipids or macromolecular membrane structures.[14][15][16] Druses may also have some purpose in calcium regulation.

See also


References

  1. Franceschi VR, Nakata PA (2005). "Calcium oxalate in plants: formation and function". Annu Rev Plant Biol. 56: 41–71. doi:10.1146/annurev.arplant.56.032604.144106. PMID 15862089.
  2. Zindler-Frank E. (1976). "Oxalate biosynthesis in relation to photosynthetic pathways and plant productivity: a survey". Z. Pflanzenphysiol. 80 (1): 1–13. doi:10.1016/S0044-328X(76)80044-X.
  3. Libert B, Franceschi VR (1987). "Oxalate in crop plants". J Agric Food Chem. 35 (6): 926–938. doi:10.1021/jf00078a019.
  4. McNair JB (1932). "The interrelation between substances in plants: essential oils and resins, cyanogen and oxalate". Am J Bot. 19 (3): 255–271. doi:10.2307/2436337. JSTOR 2436337.
  5. Prychid CJ, Jabaily RS, Rudall PJ (2008). "Cellular ultrastructure and crystal development in Amorphophallus (Araceae)". Ann. Bot. 101 (7): 983–995. doi:10.1093/aob/mcn022. PMC 2710233. PMID 18285357.
  6. Jáuregui-Zúñiga D, Reyes-Grajeda JP, Sepúlveda-Sánchez JD, Whitaker JR, Moreno A (2003). "Crystallochemical characterization of calcium oxalate crystals isolated from seed coats of Phaseolus vulgaris and leaves of Vitis vinifera". J Plant Physiol. 160 (3): 239–245. doi:10.1078/0176-1617-00947. PMID 12749080.
  7. Katayama H, Fujibayashi Y, Nagaoka S, Sugimura Y (2007). "Cell wall sheath surrounding calcium oxalate crystals in mulberry idioblasts". Protoplasma. 231 (3–4): 245–248. doi:10.1007/s00709-007-0263-x. PMID 17922267. S2CID 29944485.
  8. Hodgkinson A (1977). "Oxalic acid metabolism in higher plants". In A Hodgkinson (ed.). Oxalic Acid Biology and Medicine. Vol. 101. New York: Academic Press. pp. 131–158. doi:10.1016/0014-5793(79)81066-2. ISBN 9780123517500. {{cite book}}: |journal= ignored (help)
  9. Li XX, Franceschi VR (1990). "Distribution of peroxisomes and glycolate metabolism in relation to calcium oxalate formation in Lemna minor L.". Eur J Cell Biol. 51 (1): 9–16. PMID 2184039.
  10. Keates SA, Tarlyn N, Loewus FA, Franceschi VR (2000). "L-Ascorbic acid and L-galactose are sources of oxalic acid and calcium oxalate in Pistia stratiotes". Phytochemistry. 53 (4): 433–440. Bibcode:2000PChem..53..433K. doi:10.1016/S0031-9422(99)00448-3. PMID 10731019.
  11. Horner HT, Wagner BL (1980). "The association of druse crystals with the developing stomium of Capsicum annuum (Solanaceae) anthers". Am J Bot. 67 (9): 1347–1360. doi:10.2307/2442137. JSTOR 2442137.
  12. Arnott HJ, Webb MA (1983). "Twin crystals of calcium oxalate in the seed coat of the kidney bean". Protoplasma. 114 (1): 23–34. doi:10.1007/BF01279865. S2CID 180834.

Share this article:

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Druse_(botany), and is written by contributors. Text is available under a CC BY-SA 4.0 International License; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.