Abstract
The development and structure of mucilage cells in Opuntia polyacantha (Cactaceae) were studied at the light- and electron-microscope levels Stereological morphometric methods were used to describe quantitatively the fine structure during active secretion of mucilage. Dictyosomes are abundant and constitute 3.39% of the volume of the cytoplasm but are only 0.87% of the cytoplasm of the neighboring chlorenchyma cells. Mucilage cells contain fewer chloroplasts than chlorenchyma cells, more hyaloplasm, but nonsignificantly different amounts of endoplasmic reticulum. Furthermore, the relative volumes of several of these organelles are greatly different from any values reported for Echinocereus engelmannii.
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