Publication Title

Hoehnea

Document Type

Article

Department or Program

Biology

Publication Date

2015

Keywords

biomechanics; fiber development; primary growth; stem anatomy

Abstract

Bactris trunks are made entirely by long sustained primary growth so that mechanical properties develop progressively as the trunk matures. Anatomical features vary throughout the stem so that one small sample is a limited representation. This limits the use for stem histology with systematic purposes. We examined stem anatomy in 17 out of 73 species representing all major sub-generic groups. Stem features do not associate well with the subdivision of the genus. Distinctive structural and developmental features: are the presence of fiber strands independent of the vascular tissues, the modified ground parenchyma with a late formation of air-lacunae, and the early inception of the mechanically significant outer central cylinder. Cell expansion and fiber wall thickening develop as the stem ages, but vary in their expression in stems of different diameter. Our example thus provides an explanation for the difficulty of identifying the systematic position of fossil palm stems.

Comments

Original version is available from the publisher at: https://doi.org/10.1590/2236-8906-18/2015

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Copyright Note

This is the publisher's version of the work.

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