Plant Growth and Development Test - 2

The process of de-specialisation of differentiated cells so that they become undifferen­tiated and able to divide is known as dedifferentiation. It involves activation of certain genes which not only reverse differentiation but also stimulate cell division.

Cork cambium, wound cambium and inter-fascicular vascular cambium are always produced through dedifferentia­tion.

Growth is measured by a variety of parameters some of which are: increase in fresh weight, dry weight,length, area, volume and cell number.

one single maize root apical mersitem can give rise to more than17,500 new cells per hour, whereas cells in a watermelon may increase in size by upto 3,50,000 times.

In the former, growth is expressed as increase in cell number; the latter expresses growth as increase in size of the cell.

The initial growth is slow (lag phase), and it increases rapidly thereafter – at an exponential rate (log or exponential phase). Here, both the progeny cells following mitotic cell division retain the ability to divide and continue to do so. However, with limited nutrient supply, the growth slows down leading to a stationary phase.