Abstract
The plant cell wall surrounds the protoplasm and functions in the morphogenesis and mechanical support in cellular and individual levels. The cortical microtubule in plant cell is hypothesized to sense the mechanical information at the plasma membrane and to control the deposition of cellulose microfibril. But, the mechanism for alteration of cortical microtubule array including inducible factors is still uncertain. In this study, a mechanical testing system for single plant cell was constructed on an inverted fluorescence microscope, and the cortical microtubule array of tobacco BY-2 cell subjected to compressive force was observed using this system. Both the appearance and formation of cortical microtubule was observed after 10 minutes compression. Uncompressed cells did not remarkably change their cortical microtubule array within 10 minutes, suggesting that the external mechanical stimulus induces the alteration of cortical microtubule orientation.
