The endomembrane system of cereal seed endosperm is a highly plastic and dynamic system reflecting the high degree of specialization of this tissue. It is capable of coping with high levels of storage protein synthesis and undergoes rapid changes to accommodate these storage proteins in newly formed storage organelles such as endoplasmic reticulum-derived protein bodies or protein storage vacuoles. The study of endomembrane morphology in cereal endosperm is challenging due to the amount of starch that cereal seeds accumulate and the progressive desiccation of the tissue. Here, we present a comprehensive study of the endomembrane system of developing barley endosperm cells, complemented by correlative light and electron microscopy (CLEM) imaging. The use of genetically fused fluorescent protein tags in combination with the high resolution of electron microscopy brings ultrastructural research to a new level and can be used to generate novel insights in cell biology in general and in cereal seed research in particular.

Author contributions

Conceptualization: E.A., E.S.; Methodology: S.H., E.A., E.K.; Investigation: S.H., U.H.-D., E.A.; Resources: U.H.-D., E.K.; Writing - original draft: S.H., E.A.; Visualization: S.H.; Supervision: E.S., E.A.

Funding

This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

Data availability

All relevant data can be found within the article and its supplementary information.

Special Issue

This article is part of the Special Issue ‘Imaging Cell Architecture and Dynamics’, guest edited by Lucy Collinson and Guillaume Jacquemet. See related articles at https://journals.biologists.com/jcs/issue/137/20.

You do not currently have access to this content.