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Updated: Oct 25, 2025

A Strategy to Validate the Role of Callose-mediated Plasmodesmal Gating in the Tropic Response
Published on: April 17, 2016
Callose: a multifunctional (1, 3)-β-D-glucan involved in morphogenesis and function of angiosperm stomata
Panagiotis Apostolakos1, Eleni Giannoutsou2, Basil Galatis2
1Section of Botany, Department of Biology, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece. papostol@biol.uoa.gr.
Background:
Although the cellulose microfibril organization in guard cell (GC) walls play a crucial role in the mechanism of the stomatal function, recent work showed that matrix cell wall materials are also involved. Especially in the kidney-shaped stomata of the fern Asplenium nidus, callose actively participates in the mechanism of opening and closure of the stomatal pore.
Scope:
The present review briefly presents and discusses recent findings concerning the distribution and role of callose in the kidney-shaped stomata of the dicotyledon Vigna sinensis as well as in the dumbbell-shaped stomata of the monocotyledon Zea mays.
Conclusion:
The discussed data support that, in both categories of angiosperm stomata, callose is implicated in the mechanism of stomatal pore formation and stomata function by locally affecting the mechanical properties of the GC cell walls.
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