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Efficient preparation of Arabidopsis pollen tubes for ultrastructural analysis using chemical and cryo-fixation

Overview of attention for article published in BMC Plant Biology, October 2017
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Title
Efficient preparation of Arabidopsis pollen tubes for ultrastructural analysis using chemical and cryo-fixation
Published in
BMC Plant Biology, October 2017
DOI 10.1186/s12870-017-1136-x
Pubmed ID
Authors

Tohnyui Ndinyanka Fabrice, Andres Kaech, Gery Barmettler, Christof Eichenberger, J. Paul Knox, Ueli Grossniklaus, Christoph Ringli

Abstract

The pollen tube (PT) serves as a model system for investigating plant cell growth and morphogenesis. Ultrastructural studies are indispensable to complement data from physiological and genetic analyses, yet an effective method is lacking for PTs of the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. Here, we present reliable approaches for ultrastructural studies of Arabidopsis PTs, as well as an efficient technique for immunogold detection of cell wall epitopes. Using different fixation and embedding strategies, we show the amount of PT ultrastructural details that can be obtained by the different methods. Dozens of cross-sections can be obtained simultaneously by the approach, which facilitates and shortens the time for evaluation. In addition to in vitro-grown PTs, our study follows the route of PTs from germination, growth along the pistil, to the penetration of the dense stylar tissue, which requires considerable mechanical forces. To this end, PTs have different strategies from growing between cells but also between the protoplast and the cell wall and even within each other, where they share a partly common cell wall. The separation of PT cell walls in an outer and an inner layer reported for many plant species is less clear in Arabidopsis PTs, where these cell wall substructures are connected by a distinct transition zone. The major advancement of this method is the effective production of a large number of longitudinal and cross-sections that permits obtaining a detailed and representative picture of pollen tube structures in an unprecedented way. This is particularly important when comparing PTs of wild type and mutants to identify even subtle alterations in cytoarchitecture. Arabidopsis is an excellent plant for genetic manipulation, yet the PTs, several-times smaller compared to tobacco or lily, represent a technical challenge. This study reveals a method to overcome this problem and make Arabidopsis PTs more amenable to a combination of genetic and ultrastructural analyses.

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Mendeley readers

Mendeley readers

The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 37 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.

Geographical breakdown

Country Count As %
Unknown 37 100%

Demographic breakdown

Readers by professional status Count As %
Student > Ph. D. Student 7 19%
Other 4 11%
Student > Bachelor 4 11%
Student > Master 4 11%
Student > Postgraduate 3 8%
Other 7 19%
Unknown 8 22%
Readers by discipline Count As %
Agricultural and Biological Sciences 14 38%
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology 9 24%
Chemistry 3 8%
Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutical Science 1 3%
Engineering 1 3%
Other 0 0%
Unknown 9 24%
Attention Score in Context

Attention Score in Context

This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 1. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 16 November 2017.
All research outputs
#18,576,855
of 23,008,860 outputs
Outputs from BMC Plant Biology
#2,124
of 3,283 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#251,544
of 328,368 outputs
Outputs of similar age from BMC Plant Biology
#43
of 69 outputs
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So far Altmetric has tracked 3,283 research outputs from this source. They receive a mean Attention Score of 3.0. This one is in the 22nd percentile – i.e., 22% of its peers scored the same or lower than it.
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We're also able to compare this research output to 69 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one is in the 20th percentile – i.e., 20% of its contemporaries scored the same or lower than it.