Stars of the Plains
We often look up to see stars shining down from the sky. However, here we are looking down at microscopic star-shaped trichomes (a scientific term for “hair”) on the leaf of a showy deutzia plant. We can also see the holes that the plant uses to “breathe” and a branching vein that carries water and nutrients to and from the leaf.
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DownloadStars of the Plains
We often look up to see stars shining down from the sky. However, here we are looking down at microscopic star-shaped trichomes (a scientific term for “hair”) on the leaf of a showy deutzia plant. We can also see the holes that the plant uses to “breathe” and a branching vein that carries water and nutrients to and from the leaf.
What am I looking at?
This image is a microscopic view of the leaf of a showy deutzia (Deutzia magnifica) plant. The blue dots represent the chloroplasts of the cells in the leaf (1). The star-shaped trichomes are in shades of yellow, orange, and red (2). The red and yellow ovals surrounded by blue dots are the stomata (3), which a leaf uses to exchange gases like oxygen and carbon dioxide. Finally, the red “river” running through the image is a vein (4), which supplies the leaf with water and carries nutrients produced by the leaf to the rest of the plant.
Click on the right arrow to take a closer look at one of the trichomes on the leaf.
Biology in the background
Leaves are surprisingly complex structures that do more than gather food from sunlight. They facilitate the plant’s ability to “breathe” by allowing carbon dioxide in and letting oxygen out during the day and vice versa during the night. This gas exchange happens through tiny holes in the leaf called stomata. Trichomes are special structures that grow from the surface of the leaf. They help protect the leaves from being eaten and produce chemicals that are essential for the plant’s health and survival.
These trichomes are about 400 micrometers across, or roughly five times the width of a human hair.
Technique
These images were created using confocal microscopy.
Jan Martinek, Charles University in Prague