Vincetoxicum indicum (Burm.f.) Mabb. - a case of transient abnormal secondary thickening in stem

Authors

  • Mammen DANIEL Dr. Daniel's Laboratories, 1st Floor, Rutu Platina, Manjalpur, Vadodara-390011 (IN)
  • Denni MAMMEN Navrachana University, School of Science, Vasana Bhayli Road, Vadodara-391410 (IN)

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15835/nsb13210872

Keywords:

anomalous secondary thickening, phloem wedges; transient anomaly, Vincetoxicum indicum (Burm.f.) Mabb.

Abstract

Vincetoxicum indicum (Burm.f.) Mabb. (Syn. Tylophora indica (Burm.f.) Merr., T. asthmatica W. &A.), an important twining medicinal plant of India, was found to show a transient anomalous secondary thickening to facilitate the twisting of stem around a support. The very young stem had a continuous primary xylem cylinder, the protoxylem of which differentiated to two large bundles on the opposing sides and many smaller bundles in between. In the initial stages of maturation, the cambium outside the two large protoxylem groups behaved abnormally in producing more phloem outwards and little or no secondary xylem inwards to produce two wedge shaped phloem groups on opposite sides. The production of crescent shaped secondary xylem on the other two sides which fell at a right-angled plane resulted in bulging of these sides away from the anomalous cambium to create a rectangular stem having two broad sides which were used as the facing sides of stem against a support. As soon as the twisting nature was established, the anomaly was reversed and the anomalous cambial patches started behaving normally to produce a complete ring of secondary xylem. As this abnormal behaviour happened only during the twisting of stem, this is considered as an adaptational anomalous secondary thickening. 

Metrics

Metrics Loading ...

References

Cronquist A (1981). An Integrated system of classification of flowering plants. Columbia University Press, New York.

Daniel M (2006). Medicinal plants: chemistry and properties. Science Publishers, New Hampshire, USA.

Daniel M (2009). Taxonomy: Evolution at work. Alpha Science International Ltd, Oxford, UK.

Eames AJ (1936). Morphology of vascular plants, lower groups. McGraw Hill, New York.

Fahn A, Shchori Y (1967). The organization of the secondary conducting tissues in some species of the Chenopodiaceae. Phytomorphology 17:147-154.

Fisher JB and Blanco MA (2014). Gelatinous fibers and variant secondary growth related to stem undulation and contraction in a monkey ladder vine, Bauhinia glabra (Fabaceae). American Journal of Botany 101(4):608-616. https://doi.org/10.3732/ajb.1300407

Johansen DA (1940). Plant microtechnique. McGraw Hill, NewYork.

Kishore SR, Rao KS (2000) Secondary growth in the stem of some species of Alternanthera and Achyranthes aspera (Amaranthaceae). IAWA Journal 21(4):417-424. https://doi.org/10.1163/22941932-90000257

Metcalfe CR, Chalk L (1950). Anatomy of the dicotyledons. Clarendon Press, Oxford.

PaceMR, Angyalossy V (2013). Wood anatomy and evolution: a case study in the Bignoniaceae. International Journal of Plant Sciences 174:1014-1048. https://doi.org/10.1086/670258

Vidya SP, Nutan PM (2018). Development of xylem plates and stem anatomy of Tinospora cordifolia (Willd.) Miers. (Menispermaceae). Thaiszia Journal of Botany 28(1):07-17.

Downloads

Published

2021-04-23

How to Cite

DANIEL, M., & MAMMEN, D. (2021). Vincetoxicum indicum (Burm.f.) Mabb. - a case of transient abnormal secondary thickening in stem. Notulae Scientia Biologicae, 13(2), 10872. https://doi.org/10.15835/nsb13210872

Issue

Section

Research articles
CITATION
DOI: 10.15835/nsb13210872