Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 21, 2025

Preparation of Intact Tissue for Microscopic Analysis of the Endosperm Cell Layer in Developing and Mature Arabidopsis Seeds
Published on: May 16, 2025
Vacuole Biogenesis in Plants: How Many Vacuoles, How Many Models?
Yong Cui1, Qiong Zhao1, Shuai Hu1
1School of Life Sciences, Centre for Cell & Developmental Biology and State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, New Territories, Hong Kong, China.
Abstract:
Vacuoles are the largest membrane-bounded organelles and have essential roles in plant growth and development, but several important questions on the biogenesis and dynamics of lytic vacuoles (LVs) remain. Here, we summarize and discuss recent research and models of vacuole formation, and propose, with testable hypotheses, that besides inherited vacuoles, plant cells can also synthesize LVs de novo from multiple organelles and routes in response to growth and development or external factors. Therefore, LVs may be further classified into different subgroups and/or populations with different pH, cargos, and functions, among which multivesicular body (MVB)-derived small vacuoles are the main source for central vacuole formation in arabidopsis root cortical cells.
Related Concept Videos
Short-distance Transport of Resources
The Apoplast and Symplast
Animal and Plant Cell Structure
Cell Division
Though both plant and animal cells divide by mitosis (for non-gametic cells) and meiosis (for gametic cells), they differ in the specifics of this process. Unlike animal cells, plant cells lack centrosomes — an organelle responsible for organizing the spindle fibers and segregating the chromosomes during...
Morphogenesis
Seedless Vascular Plants
C4 Pathway and CAM
C4 Pathway
The C4 pathway is used by plants such as...

