title: Ultrastructure of the Epidermal Cell Wall and Cuticle of Tomato Fruit (Solanum lycopersicum L.) during Development.
abstract: The epidermis plays a pivotal role in plant development and interaction with the environment. However, it is still poorly understood, especially its outer epidermal wall: a singular wall covered by a cuticle. Changes in the cuticle and cell wall structures are important to fully understand their functions. In this work, an ultrastructure and immunocytochemical approach was taken to identify changes in the cuticle and the main components of the epidermal cell wall during tomato fruit development. A thin and uniform procuticle was already present before fruit set. During cell division, the inner side of the procuticle showed a globular structure with vesicle-like particles in the cell wall close to the cuticle. Transition between cell division and elongation was accompanied by a dramatic increase in cuticle thickness, which represented more than half of the outer epidermal wall, and the lamellate arrangement of the non-cutinized cell wall. Changes in this non-cutinized outer wall during development showed specific features not shared with other cell walls. The coordinated nature of the changes observed in the cuticle and the epidermal cell wall indicate a deep interaction between these two supramolecular structures. Hence, the cuticle should be interpreted within the context of the outer epidermal wall.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Hortofruticultura Subtropical y Mediterránea La Mayora, Universidad de Málaga - Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Departamento de Biología Molecular y Bioquímica, Universidad de Málaga, E-29071 Málaga, Spain (P.S., A.H.); andDepartamento de Mejora Genética y Biotecnología, Estación Experimental La Mayora, Algarrobo-Costa, E-29750 Málaga, Spain. (E.D.).
authors.forename: Patricia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Segado
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Hortofruticultura Subtropical y Mediterránea La Mayora, Universidad de Málaga - Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Departamento de Biología Molecular y Bioquímica, Universidad de Málaga, E-29071 Málaga, Spain (P.S., A.H.); andDepartamento de Mejora Genética y Biotecnología, Estación Experimental La Mayora, Algarrobo-Costa, E-29750 Málaga, Spain. (E.D.).
authors.forename: Eva
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Domínguez
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Hortofruticultura Subtropical y Mediterránea La Mayora, Universidad de Málaga - Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Departamento de Biología Molecular y Bioquímica, Universidad de Málaga, E-29071 Málaga, Spain (P.S., A.H.); andDepartamento de Mejora Genética y Biotecnología, Estación Experimental La Mayora, Algarrobo-Costa, E-29750 Málaga, Spain. (E.D.) heredia@uma.es.
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3328-1115
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Heredia
mesh_terms: D002452:Cell Count; D002455:Cell Division; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D002473:Cell Wall / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D002482:Cellulose / Q000378:metabolism; D005638:Fruit / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D018551:Solanum lycopersicum / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D010368:Pectins / Q000378:metabolism; D019441:Plant Epidermis / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development / Q000648:ultrastructure*
chemical_list: D010368:Pectins; D002482:Cellulose