Variation of quantitative anatomical characteristics in the culm of belangke bamboo (Gigantochloa pruriens)

Abstract

The anatomical characteristics of the stem of belangke bamboo (Gigantochloa pruriens), which is native in North Sumatra, Indonesia, were examined to attain valuable information for identification and effective utilization. The number and type of vessel bundles and the fiber and metaxylem dimensions in the longitudinal (bottom, middle, and top) and radial (outer, central, and inner) directions of the bamboo culm were investigated by optical microscopy. The vascular bundles were distributed unevenly and arranged alternately, as shown by cross-sectional images of the culms. The proportion of vascular bundles in the culm decreased from the outer layer to the inner layer and tended to increase from the bottom to the top. Most vascular bundles were classified as type IV at the bottom and as type III in the middle and top parts. Fiber length and cell wall thickness tended to increase from the bottom to the top and from the inner layer to the outer layer. Metaxylem length and diameter increased from the outer layer to the inner layer and from the bottom towards the top of the stem. It was revealed that the anatomical characteristics of the belangke bamboo varied significantly in the vertical and radial directions.

Variation of anatomical characteristics within the culm of the three Gigantochloa species from Indonesia

“…Vessel cell portion tended to increase from the bottom culm to the top culm position. Darwis et al (2020) reported a similar trend in G. pruriens, with an increase in the parenchyma percentage from the outer to the inner part and vice versa for the vascular bundles. They also reported that parenchyma percentage in the bottom position was lower than that in the middle and top positions.…”

“…Other research from India found that the longest fiber in the culm of Bambusa mizorameana was in the middle position and the shortest was in the bottom position (Kumar et al 2017). In G. pruriens, the fiber length was reported to be the shortest in the inner and bottom of the culm (Darwis et al 2020). The vessel diameter of the outer part of Gigantochloa bamboo ranged from 173.1 µm to 308.1 µm (Table 5).…”

“…Vascular bundle number near epidermis of the culm of Phyllostachys pubescens was higher than that in the near pith part (Jeon et al 2018b). Quite recently, Darwis et al (2020) reported using a nonlinear regression equation that the number of vascular bundles in the culm of G. pruriens decreased from the outer layer to the inner.…”

Gene Set Subtraction Reveals 633 Candidate Genes for Bamboo Culm Wall Thickening

“…xinwuense [15][16][17]. We re-sequenced the whole genomes of these four bamboo species simultaneously and compared them with the P. edulis reference genome.…”

“…In contrast, P. edulis 'Pachyloen', P. nidularia f. farcta, and P. heteroclada f. solida are members of the genus Phyllostachys, with distinctly thickened culm walls that are 1-2 times thicker than S. dumetorum var. xinwuense [15][16][17]. We re-sequenced the whole genomes of these four bamboo species simultaneously and compared them with the P. edulis reference genome.…”