Immunofluorescence microscopy of organized microtubule arrays in structurally stabilized meristematic plant cells.

Cells were prepared for indirect immunofluorescence microscopy after paraformaldehyde
fixation of multicellular root apices and brief incubation in cell wall-digesting enzymes. This allowed
subsequent separation of the tissue into individual cells or short files of cells which were put onto
coverslips coated with polylysine. Unlike spherical protoplasts made from living tissues, these
preparations retain the same polyhedral shape as the cells from which they are derived. Cellular
contents, including organized arrays of microtubules, are likewise structurally stabilized . Antibodies
to porcine brain tubulin react with all types of microtubule array known to occur in plant meristematic cells, namely, interphase cortical microtubules, pre-prophase bands, the mitotic spindle, and phragmoplast microtubules. The retention of antigenicity in permeabilized, isolated, stabilized cells from typical, wall-enclosed plant cells has much potential for plant immunocytochemistry, and in particular should facilitate work on the role of microtubules in the morphogenesis of organized plant tissues.