Research Abstracts
The microstructure of almond (Prunus dulcis (Mill.) D. A. Webb cv. ‘Nonpareil’) cotyledon.
Young, C. T., W. E. Schadel, H. E. Pattee, T. H. Sanders, 2004. The microstructure of almond (Prunus dulcis (Mill.) D. A. Webb cv. ‘Nonpareil’) cotyledon. Lebensm.-Wiss. u.-Technol. 37:317-322.
Microstructure of almond cotyledon was observed with light, scanning and transmission electron microscopy. The objective of this study was to characterize almond cotyledon surfaces as well as to describe internal and sub cellular organization. This study will serve as a reference for future evaluation of the Microstructural changes, which occur as almonds are cooked or processed into other forms such as paste or butter. The testa has an outer epidermis, which consists of relatively large thin-walled cells, which range from 100 to 300 μm in width. The major portion of the testa consists of approximately 14-20 layers of flattened parenchymal vascular tissue. The embryo consisted primarily of parenchymal tissue with relatively thin cell walls (1-3 μm in thickness) and a small amount of provascular tissue. Protein bodies up to 12 μm in width and spaces once occupied by lipid bodies up to 3μm in width were present in all cells of the embryo.