B. Sattelmacher et al., THE APOPLAST - ITS SIGNIFICANCE FOR THE NUTRITION OF HIGHER-PLANTS, Zeitschrift fur Pflanzenernahrung und Bodenkunde, 161(5), 1998, pp. 485-498
Since the fundamental work of the botanist Ernst Munch there has been
a clear differentiation between a symplastic and an apoplastic compart
ment of plants, separated by the plasmalemma. In contrast to the sympl
ast, the apoplast was considered as being dead and hence attracted lit
tle interest. It is not before the late seventies of this century that
plant scientists realised that processes such as growth and different
iation as well as signal transduction may not be understood without ac
counting for apoplastic processes. Since then growing evidence has sup
ported the view that apoplastic properties are of significance for suc
h diverse processes as genotypic variation in nutrient efficiency and
tolerance against adverse ion relations, for plant/microbe interaction
, or for water and nutrient transport. In this contribution we review
apoplastic properties and processes in relation to plant mineral nutri
tion. Examples are taken from work being conducted in the scope of the
special research project of the German Research Foundation ''The apop
last of higher plants: compartment for storage, transport and reaction
s'' and especially from own work.