Modern Methods of Plant Analysis When the handbook Modern Methods of Plant Analysis was first introduced in 1954 the considerations were 1. the dependence of scientific progress in biology on the improvement of existing and the introduction of new methods; 2. the inavailability of many new analytical methods concealed in specialized journals not normally accessible to experimental plant biologists; 3. the fact that in the methods sections of papers the description of methods is frequently so compact, or even sometimes so incomplete, that experiments are difficult to reproduce. These considerations still stand today. The series was highly successful, seven volumes appearing between 1956 and 1964. Since today there is still a demand for the old series, the publisher has decided to resume publication of Modern Methods of Plant Analysis. It is hoped that the New Series will be as acceptable to those working in plant sciences and related fields as the early volumes undoubtedly were. It is difficult to single out the major reasons for success of any publication, but we believe that the methods published in the first series were up-to-date at the time and the descriptions as applied to plant material so complete in themselves that there was little need to consult other publications.

Klappentext

This first volume in Modern Methods of Plant Analysis, New Series deals with cell components and organelles. In contrast to many other publications on cell fractionation, it begins with chapters on the cell wall, the structure that sets most plant cells apart from animal and bacterial cells and that made studies of plant cell components extremely difficult until the advent of protoplast formation by enzymatic breakdown of the cell wall. Perhaps the most significant breakthrough in plant cell fractionation, protoplast formation is dealt with in the third chapter, following a chapter on the use of "markers" in cell fractionation. All the major cell components and organelles are covered in turn, and the suitability of each method for analytical or preparative use is indicated. This volume provides an extremely useful foundation for later volumes in the series.

Inhalt
Cell-Wall-Isolation, General Growth Aspects.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Isolation Procedures.- 3 Composition and Ultrastructure of Plant Cell Walls.- 4 Properties of Plant Cell Walls.- 5 Growth Aspects.- References.- Cell-Wall Chemistry, Structure and Components.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Histochemical Analysis of Cell Walls.- 3 Quantitative Analysis of Cell Walls.- 4 Qualitative Analysis of Cell-Wall Materials.- 5 Chromatographic Analysis of Cell-Wall Constituents.- References.- Protoplastsfor Compartmentation Studies.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Advantages of the Use of Protoplasts for Compartmentation Studies.- 3 Protoplast Isolation and Its Effect on Cellular Metabolism.- 4 Protoplast Lysis.- 5 Protoplast Fractionation.- 6 Methods to Relate Protoplast Activity to That of Intact Tissue.- 7 Concluding Remarks.- References.- The Marker Concept in Cell Fractionation.- 1 Introduction.- 2 The Marker Concept.- 3 Preservation of Marker Enzyme Activity During Cell Disruption.- 4 Methods Used to Separate Markers.- 5 Concluding Remarks.- References.- Plasma Membranes.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Theory of Phase Partition.- 3 Experimentals.- 4 Purity of the Preparations.- 5 Protein and Lipid Composition.- 6 Surface Properties of the Isolated Vesicles.- References.- Vacuoles.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Methods of Isolation.- 3 Isolation of Tonoplast and Tonoplast Markers.- 4 Comments on Physiological Functions.- 5 Concluding Remarks.- References.- Protein Bodies.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Special Consideration in Isolation of Protein Bodies.- 3 Nonaqueous Preparation in Glycerol.- 4 Nonaqueous Preparation in Hexane and Carbon Tetrachloride.- 5 Aqueous Preparation in Sources Gradients.- 6 Subfractionation of Isolated Protein Bodies.- 7 Analyses.- References.- Lipid Bodies.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Ontogeny.- 3 Isolation.-4 Markers of Lipid Bodies.- 5 Assays.- References.- Chloroplasts as a Whole.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Considerations of Integrity and Purity.- 3 Chloroplasts from Protoplasts.- 4 The Use of Silica Sols in Density Gradient Purification of Chloroplasts.- 5 General Notes on Isolation Procedures.- 6 Specific Isolation Protocols.- 7 Additional Comments on Chloroplast Isolation.- 8 Abbreviations.- References.- Purification of Inner and Outer Chloroplast Envelope Membranes.- 1 Introduction.- 2 General Considerations.- 3 The Procedure.- 4 Properties of the Isolated Membranes.- 5 Modifications of the Procedure.- 6 Other Procedures.- References.- The Major Protein of Chloroplast Stroma, Ribulosebisphosphate Carboxylase.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Characteristics of RuBP Carboxylase.- 3 Practical Aspects.- 4 Conclusion.- References.- The Chloroplast Thylakoid MembraneIsolation, Subfractionation and Purification of Its Supramolecular Complexes.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Function and Organization of the Thylakoid Membrane.- 3 Isolation of Thylakoid Membranes.- 4 Thylakoid Membrane Subfractionation.- 5 Isolation of Thylakoid Supramolecular Complexes.- References.- The Isolation and Characterization of Nongreen Plastids.- 1 Introduction.- 2 The Terminology of Nongreen Plastids.- 3 Basics of Plastid Isolation and Separation.- 4 Isolation of Nongreen Plastids from Developing Ricinus Endosperm.- 5 Metabolic Capabilities of Ricinus Endosperm Plastids.- 6 Composition and Biochemical Properties.- 7 Future Prospects.- References.- Mitochondria.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Preparation for DNA Analysis.- 3 Preparation of Intact Mitochondria for Oxidative Studies.- References.- Endoplasmic Reticulum.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Structure and Organization of the ER.- 3 Interactions Between Tubular and Cisternal ER.- 4Synthesis and Degradation of ER.- 5 Isolation and Characterization of ER.- References.- Polyribosomes.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Isolation of Polysomes from Plant Cells.- 3 Purification and Analysis of Polyribosomes.- 4 Polyribosome Extraction Buffers.- 5 Uses of Purified Polyribosomes.- References.- The NucleusCytological Methods and Isolation for Biochemical Studies.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Structure of the Plant Nucleus and Implications for Nuclear Isolation and Staining.- 3 Cytology.- 4 Isolation of Plant NucleiGeneral.- 5 Summary.- References.- Microtubules.- 1 Introduction.- 2 Extraction of Microtubule Proteins.- 3 Purification of Tubulin and MAP's.- 4 Fractionation and Identification of Tubulin by SDS-PAGE.- 5 Colchicine-Binding Assay for Tubulin.- 6 Immunochemical Methods of Analysis.- 7 Concluding Remarks.- References.