Guarding Guard Cell

(Patterning Guard Cell and Subsidiary Cells)

I. Introduction
Water, organic molecules and other minerals enter the plant through the root hairs
and leave the plants body through the opening, found mostly in leaves, called stomata. It is
the vascular system, specifically the xylem which in the case of Angiosperms is composed of
tracheids and vessel elements responsible for the transport of the absorbed nutrients. The
plant undergoes the process of transpiration wherein water, organic molecules and minerals
absorbed by plants are transported from roots to stems and leaves where water will
evaporates in a pore referred to as stomata.
The stomata is an opening found in the epidermis that is surrounded by guard cells.
In some species, the stomata are surrounded by cells that do not differ from other ground
cells of the epidermis. These cells are called neighboring cells. In others, the guard cells are
bordered by one or more cells that differ in size, shape, arrangement, and sometimes in
content from the ordinary epidermal cells. These distinct cells are called subsidiary cells
(Evert, 2007). The guard cells regulate the small pores, or stomata (singular: stoma), in the
aerial parts of the plant and hence control the movement of gases, including water vapor,
into and out of those parts (Evert, 2013).
The purpose of this paper is to know the distribution of the guard cells and subsidiary
cells in the epidermis of plant leaves.

II. Development and Differentiation

III. Mechanism and Regulation of Stomata Movements
IV. Distribution of Guard Cells and Subsidiary Cells
The stomata distribution pattern in the leaf epidermis is
not only genetically controlled, but also affected by
environmental factors such as light intensity, humidity,
temperature, atmospheric carbon dioxide level, soil
moisture, and nutrient availability, and by the internal
architecture and leaf position [610].
V. Response to the Environment
VI. Summary
VII. References
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
Evert, Ray Franklin.
Esaus Plant anatomy : meristems, cells, and tissues of the plant body : their structure, function, and
development /
Ray F. Evert.3rd ed.
p. cm.
Rev. ed. of: Plant anatomy / Katherine Esau. 2nd. ed. 1965.

ISBN-13: 978-0-471-73843-5 (cloth)

ISBN-10: 0-471-73843-3 (cloth)
1. Plant anatomy. 2. Plant morphology. I. Esau, Katherine, 1898- Plant anatomy. II. Title.
QK671.E94 2007
571.3'2dc22

Assmann, S.M. and Wang, X.Q., From Milliseconds to

Millions of Years: Guard Cells and Environmental
Responses, Curr. Opin. Plant Biol., 2001, vol. 4,
pp. 421428.