This atlas presents beautiful photographs and 3D-reconstruction images of cellular structures in plants, algae, fungi, and related organisms taken by a variety of microscopes and visualization techniques. Much of the knowledge described here has been gathered only in the past quarter of a century and represents the frontier of research. The book is divided into nine chapters: Nuclei and Chromosomes; Mitochondria; Chloroplasts; The Endoplasmic Reticulum, Golgi Apparatuses, and Endocytic Organelles; Vacuoles and Storage Organelles; Cytoskeletons; Cell Walls; Generative Cells; and Meristems. Each chapter includes several illustrative photographs accompanied by a short text explaining the background and meaning of the image and the method by which it was obtained, with references. Readers can enjoy the visual tour within cells and will obtain new insights into plant cell structure. This atlas is recommended for plant scientists, students, their teachers, and anyone else who is curious about the extraordinary variety of living things.

This profusely illustrated reference guide offers students and nature lovers a fundamental understanding of all plant life, from the tallest trees to tiny fungal growths. It explains plant formation, growth, and reproduction, both in the wild, and in cultivated fields and plant nurseries. Cross-section illustrations show the parts of fruits and flowers and explain seed germination. Plant life is also presented within the larger context of the Earth's ecosystem. The influence of climates is shown with focus on how plant life differs in desserts, rain forests, and temperate zones. Plants are seen as sources of food, as floral and garden decoration, as wood for lumber, and even as fiber for the manufacture of cloth and rope. The book is filled with photos, artwork, and easy-to-read diagrams and charts, all in full color. It makes a fine reference book for classrooms and school libraries.

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER), called "the mother of all membranes," is spotlighted in this timely new book. The work presented here is especially exciting since GFP-technology has provided new ways of looking at the dynamics of the ER and its relationship to other organelles, particularly the Golgi apparatus and peroxisomes. This book provides in-depth knowledge of the ER and the diverse roles it plays.

This work is a comprehensive collection of articles that cover aspects of cell wall research in the genomic era. Some 2500 genes are involved in some way in wall biogenesis and turnover, from generation of substrates, to polysaccharide and lignin synthesis, assembly, and rearrangement in the wall. Although a great number of genes and gene families remain to be characterized, this issue provides a census of the genes that have been discovered so far. The articles comprising this issue not only illustrate the enormous progress made in identifying the wealth of wall-related genes but they also show the future directions and how far we have to go. As cell walls are an enormously important source of raw material, we anticipate that cell-wall-related genes are of significant economic importance. Examples include the modification of pectin-cross-linking or cell-cell adhesion to increase shelf life of fruits and vegetables, the enhancement of dietary fiber contents of cereals, the improvement of yield and quality of fibers, and the relative allocation of carbon to wall biomass for use as biofuels. The book is intended for academic and professional scientists working in the area of plant biology as well as material chemists and engineers, and food scientists who define new ways to use cell walls.

Tremendous advances have been made in techniques and application of microscopy since the authors' original publication of Plant Cell Biology, An Ultrastructural Approach in 1975. With this revision, the authors have added over 200 images exploiting modern techniques such as cryo-microscopy, immuno-gold localisations, immunofluorescence and confocal microscopy, and in situ hybridisation. Additionally, there is a concise, readable outline of these techniques. With these advances in microscopy and parallel advances in molecular biology, more and more exciting new information on structure-function relationships in plant cells has become available. This revision presents new images and provides a modern view of plan cell biology in a completely rewritten text that emphasizes underlying principles. It introduces broad concepts and uses carefully selected representative micrographs to illustrate fundamental information on structures and processes. Both students and researchers will find this a valuable resource for exploring plant cell and molecular biology.

The recent application of molecular genetics to problems of developmental biology has provided us with greater insight into the molecular mechanisms by which cells determine their developmental fate. This is particularly evident in the recent progress in understanding of developmental processes in model animal systems such as Drosophila melanogaster and Caenorhabditis elegans. De spite the use of plants in some of the earliest genetics experiments, the elucida tion of the molecular bases of plant development has lagged behind that of animal development. However, the emergence of model systems such as Arabi dopsis thaliana, amenable to developmental genetics, has led to the beginning of the unraveling of the mysteries behind plant morphogenesis. This atlas of the morphology and development of the weed Arabidopsis is in tended to be a reference book, both for scientists already familiar with plant anatomy and for those utilizing Arabidopsis who have come from other fields. The primary concentration is on descriptions rather than interpretations, as interpretations evolve and change relatively rapidly, whereas the evolution of plant form takes place on a much longer time scale. Molecular genetics and the use of mutants to probe wild-type gene function rely on the wild-type being well characterized. With this in mind, an attempt was made to present detailed descriptions of wild-type structure and development, to provide a foundation for comparison with the selected mutants in the atlas. More importantly, it is hoped that the atlas will serve as a valuable resource in the characterization of new mutants.