Studies on graft unions. I. Plasmodesmata between cells of plants belonging to different unrelated taxa

Abstract

In order to answer the question whether plasmodesmata exist between the cells of stock and scion in a graft union of higher plants, a heteroplastic graft has been selected with species-specific cell markers.Vicia faba was used as scion andHelianthus annuus as stock. In the mixed callus of the graft union, individual cells of the two partners differ in the structure of the nuclei, plastids and microbodies. In the fused cell walls betweenVicia andHelianthus cells, plasmodesmata interconnect the protoplasts of the unrelated cells. Two types of plasmodesma occur: single strands and branched connections. The fine structure of the interspecific cell bridges, which have been secondarily formed in non-division walls, is similar to that of normal plasmodesmata in division walls. Some questions concerning compatibility/incompatibility in the heterograft are discussed.