Raman imaging of Micrasterias: new insights into shape formation.

ABSTRACT: The algae Micrasterias with its star-shaped cell pattern is a perfect unicellular model system to study morphogenesis. How the indentations are formed in the primary cell wall at exactly defined areas puzzled scientists for decades, and they searched for chemical differences in the primary wall of the extending tips compared to the resting indents. We now tackled the question by Raman imaging and scanned in situ Micrasterias cells at different stages of development. Thousands of Raman spectra were acquired from the mother cell and the developing semicell to calculate chemical images based on an algorithm finding the most different Raman spectra. Each of those spectra had characteristic Raman bands, which were assigned to molecular vibrations of BaSO₄, proteins, lipids, starch, a

SUBMITTER: Felhofer M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8523415 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature