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Updated: Feb 11, 2026

Confocal Live Imaging of Shoot Apical Meristems from Different Plant Species
Published on: March 29, 2019
Linear relationships between shoot magnesium and calcium concentrations among angiosperm species are associated with
Philip J White1,2, Martin R Broadley3, Hamed A El-Serehy4
1The James Hutton Institute, Invergowrie, Dundee, UK.
Background:
Linear relationships are commonly observed between shoot magnesium ([Mg]shoot) and shoot calcium ([Ca]shoot) concentrations among angiosperm species growing in the same environment.
Scope And Conclusions:
This article argues that, in plants that do not exhibit 'luxury' accumulation of Mg or Ca, (1) distinct stoichiometric relationships between [Mg]shoot and [Ca]shoot are exhibited by at least three groups of angiosperm species, namely commelinid monocots, eudicots excluding Caryophyllales, and Caryophyllales species; (2) these relationships are determined by cell wall chemistry and the Mg/Ca mass quotients in their cell walls; (3) differences between species in [Mg]shoot and [Ca]shoot within each group are associated with differences in the cation exchange capacity (CEC) of the cell walls of different species; and (4) Caryophyllales constitutively accumulate more Mg in their vacuoles than other angiosperm species when grown without a supra-sufficient Mg supply.
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