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. 1976 Nov;58(5):636–643. doi: 10.1104/pp.58.5.636

Turgor Pressure Sensing in Plant Cell Membranes 1

Hans G L Coster a, Ernst Steudle b, Ulrich Zimmermann b
PMCID: PMC542273  PMID: 16659734

Abstract

Experimental evidence is reviewed which shows that the cell membrane is compressible by both mechanical and electrical forces. Calculations are given which show that significant changes in the thickness of cell membranes can occur as a result of (a) direct compression due to the turgor pressure; (b) indirect effects due to the stretching of the cell wall; and (c) the stresses induced by the electric field in the membrane.

Such changes in the membrane thickness may provide the pressure-transducing mechanism required for osmoregulation and growth. An important feature of the model is that this pressure transduction can occur not only in the plasmalemma (where there is a pressure gradient), but also in the tonoplast.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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