Researchers Analyse Leaf Structure By 3D Observation Method
A research group led by Dr. Ouk Rachana, Assistant Professor Takao Ooi, Lecturer Daisuke Sugiura, and Professor Mitsutaka Taniguchi from the Graduate School of Bioagricultural Sciences, Nagoya University, Tokai National University Organization, has developed a continuous sectioning method in which samples are cut at regular intervals for observation. Using this technology, the internal structure of rice leaf blades was reconstructed and visualized in three dimensions, and by performing 3D data analysis, it was possible to accurately determine the surface area of mesophyll cells and chloroplasts that face intercellular spaces, which is closely related to photosynthetic ability. successfully calculated to
The surface area of mesophyll cells and chloroplasts, which face air-flowing intercellular spaces in leaf tissue, is one of the factors that affect the gas exchange capacity of plants during photosynthesis. A method of estimating from a two-dimensional plane image taken by thinly cutting has been used. However, the leaf tissue of rice is characterized by a spongy complex constricted mesophyll cell cross section in the transverse direction, and a fence-like arrayed mesophyll cell cross section in the longitudinal direction. However, until now there was no clear guideline as to which cross section should be used and how to estimate the surface area.
In this study, the internal structure of rice leaf blades was reconstructed three-dimensionally by serial section-optical microscopy, and the volumes of mesophyll cells and chloroplasts and the surface area facing intercellular spaces were directly measured. We created cross-sections and longitudinal sections of the leaf tissue from the data, and clarified the conditions under which the differences between the estimated values and the measured values were smaller than those estimated by the conventional method. This will improve the accuracy of the rapid estimation method and is expected to be useful for research on enhancing the photosynthetic capacity of crops .
The results of this research were published in the international academic journal Annals of Botany on December 22, 2022.