Anatomy and ultrastructure of spur nectary of Gymnadenia conopsea (L.) Orchidaceae

Abstract

The anatomy and the ultrastructure of spur nectaries of <em>Cymnadenia conopsea</em> at different developmental stages were investigated. The secretory epidermis surrounded the inside of spur and formed many unicellular papillae, which significantly enlarged the secretory surface. At the activity stage the epidermal cells contained characteristic plastids with well developed intraplastidal membrane system and numerous osmiophillic globules. The contact of plastids and endoplasmic reticulum indicates a possibility of the involvement of these structures in the secretory processes. The cell wall and the cuticle did not form a barrier for the secreted nectar and no pores or cracks were visible in the cuticle covering secretory papillae

Studies on floral nectary, tepals’ structure, and gynostemium morphology of Epipactis palustris (L.) Crantz (Orchidaceae)

“…In E. palustris , endoplasmic reticulum was in contact with plasmalemma, as observed previously in Restrepia (Pridgeon and Stern 1983). Moreover, the vesicles fusing with plasmalemma were frequently reported in secretory cells of callus and isthmus, as in other orchid species, e.g., in Gymnadenia (Stpiczyńska and Matusiewicz 2001), Anacamptis (Kowalkowska et al 2012), and Bulbophyllum (Kowalkowska et al 2014). The vesicles were sometimes surrounded by invaginations of the plasmalemma, which is also a way of granulocrine secretion, as in Anacamptis (Kowalkowska et al 2012).…”

“…Moreover, the expanded system of ER profiles was sometimes in connection with lipid bodies in callus. Lipids were frequently noted in the nectary cells of other orchids (Figueiredo and Pais 1992; Stpiczyńska 1997; Stpiczyńska and Matusiewicz 2001; Stpiczyńska et al 2004; Paiva 2009). Lipid bodies present in the cytoplasm were regarded as physical equivalents of production of volatiles in osmophores (Swanson et al 1980; Pridgeon and Stern 1983; Curry et al 1988), also observed in Anacamptis (Kowalkowska et al 2012).…”

Mechanism of Spontaneous Autogamy in the Allogamous Lepidopteran Orchid Gymnadenia Conopsea (L.) R. Br. (Orchidaceae)

“…The generative shoot forms a fairly dense inflorescence, consisting of 27-70 and as many as 87 flowers (Vakhrameeva et al, 2008;personal observation). Flowers are small, pinkish or reddish lilac, with narrow spurs of 11-18 mm long, containing a large amount of nectar (Stpiczyńska and Matusiewicz, 2001;Bell et al, 2009, Jersáková et al, 2010. During both day and night, flowers emit a weak vanilla-like but slightly unpleasant scent (Marhold et al, 2005), which is produced in osmophores on the surface of the labellum and lateral sepals (Stpiczyńska, 2001).…”

Two structures and functions in the nectary of Frankincense tree (Boswellia sacra Flueck.)

“…This is a remarkable peculiarity, because as a rule in other plant species, such secretory structures are generally alternative (Nepi, 2007), in particular in Sapindales (Bachelier and Endress, 2009). Besides B. sacra, a double secretion pattern have been observed in the nectary of some Orchidaceae species (Stpiczynska and Matusiewicz, 2001;Stpiczynska et al, 2005b;Teixeira et al, 2004).…”