CELL-SURFACE IN CALLUNA VULGARIS L HAIR ROOTS - INSITU LOCALIZATION OF POLYSACCHARIDIC COMPONENTS

Calluna vulgaris possesses small roots called "hair roots", which in natural conditions are colonized by symbiotic mycorrhizal fungi. A specialized cell surface-consisting of the cell wall and the overlaying mucilage-has been hypothesized to be important for the establishment of ericoid mycorrhizae. In this work the cell surface of hair roots of plants growing in sterile conditions has been characterized by using in situ techniques, integrated when possible, by biochemical analysis. The mucilage is abundant around the apex, while it becomes thinner and thinner on the differentiated parts. Sugar residues such as mannose, glucose and galactose are regularly distributed along the whole root length, while N-acetylglucosamine residues are limited to the differentiated part of the hair root. Cellobiohydrolase-gold complex, used to reveal β-1, 4-glucans, regularly labels mucilage and cell walls of apical and differentiated regions. Polygalacturonic acids revealed by monoclonal antibodies are found at the surface of the cap cells and on the cell walls of the inner tissues in the differentiated zones, but never at the surface of the epidermal cells. The labeling continuity between mucilage and cell walls demonstrates that some molecules such as β-1, 4-glucans are common to the two compartments, but probably have a different status of aggregation. On the contrary, other molecules, such as N-acetylglucosamine or polygalacturonic acid display a precise pattern of localization following root differentiation. © 1990 Springer-Verlag.