Some Aspects of Differentiation in Cells of Picea Glauca Cultivated in Vitro

Microscopic observation of cells of Picea glauca , grown in tissue culture under a variety of cultural conditions, reveals a series of phenomena which are believed to be associated with the development of specific types of cells recognizable in intact plants. Characteristically patterned deposits of resin drops, and strands, furrows, and channels in the cytoplasm appear to be capable of serving as templates around which cellulose and lignin may later be deposited. The cytoplasm is extruded into characteristic papillae, and cell content may be extruded slowly or ejected with force through the cell walls, through multiple pores of characteristic distribution. Material ejected from such cells condenses in characteristic extracellular patterns. All of these processes may contribute to the differentiation of recognizable distinct cell types.