Plant Science Bulletin archive

Issue: 1967 v13 No 1 SpringActions

PLANT SCIENCE BULLETIN

A Publication of the Botanical Society of America, Inc.

March, 1967   Volume Thirteen   Number One

Extranuclear Botanical Cytology

Richard A. Solberg
University of Montana

Since the invention of the electron microscope, immeasurable advances have been made in our knowledge of cellular ultrastructure, and the complimentarity of that ultrastructure and function. Concomitant with the advances in electron microscopy there has not been an apparent, proportionate increase in advances in cytological studies which employ living cells. There are obvious exceptions to this generalization that hardly need elaboration in view of their basic import to all studies of botanical sciences, e.g., the work done by F. C. Steward and his associates. As usual, zoologists seem to be outdistancing botanists in studying living cytoplasm, and therein lies a tacit plea. Nevertheless, a few points of discovery are worth pin-pointing because of their obscurity in the modern research literature.

During the late 1950's and early 1960's, researchers have taken to investigating the dynamic phases of chloroplast morphology as well as the static ultrastructural aspects of chloroplasts.''''''' Perhaps the best description of the lability of chloroplasts comes from motion pictures taken in Dr. S. G. Wildman's laboratory, with the able and ex-pert direction of Drs. T. Hongladorum and S. I. Honda' Oddly enough, the film is not of a research nature, but rather is available even to high school biology classes through the University Extension Service in Berkeley, California. This is certainly a unique example of beginning students being exposed to a spectacular "frontier of science" which has been so inadequately handled in the research literature, and is essentially absent from texts. A cytological review of numerous cells from numerous plant species has convinced us that the "mobile phase" projections (or protuberances), as termed by Dr. Wildman, are ubiquitous in higher plants. Even the small, underdeveloped plastids in tobacco leaf trichomes show spectacular protuberances when viewed under high magnification with phase optics. The mobile phase appears to be a layer of specialized matrix which envelopes the plastid. However, it is not merely an accidental phenomenon involving surface accretion of the general background cytoplasm on to the plastid membrane, but may indeed involve the stroma.' The mobile phase shows complete autonomy of movement in relation to cyclotic forces of the surrounding cytoplasm per se. The protuberances have been seen to exceed 20p. in length, and exhibit considerable diversity of form. A projection of this length may be obtained in a matter of 10-15 seconds, and directional cyclosis has no effect on the size, direction, or time required for elongation. The obvious questions that arise are (a) what is the composition and function of the protuberances, and (b) how can (a) be critically studied in the living cell? The lability of the mobile phase includes the capacity to bud or pinch off segments at the extreme end of a protuberance. Dr. Wildman's group cautiously describes the derivatives as being "indistinguishable from mitochondria."''''' The protuberances do not seem to involve the outer membrane of the plastid's stationary component. A protuberance has its own outer double membrane. If not, its integrity and autonomy would be maintained only by colloidal phase differences. If double, are the "buds" the same as mitochrondrial initials or plastid initials? Internal invaginations of membranes have been reported by Possingham, et al.' What energetic processes are involved which allow general cyclosis to be essentially negated? Five plastids have been observed to extend protuberances simultaneously to a nearby nuclear surface (see figure). Was this an accident or did this activity have some functional significance?

Another feature of Iiving cytoplasm that deserves similar comment is what Solberg and Bald'` have unfortunately termed as the "cytoplasmic vesicles." The term is unfortunate in that zoologists have previously utilized the word "vesicle" in describing membrane-bounded droplets produced by the Golgi membrane system. The cytoplasmic vesicles have been found in many types of cells investigated to date, though they are most obvious in mature chlorophyllous tissues. The largest trichomes of solanaceous species provide prime study material. Vesicles lie within the parietal cytoplasm of mature cells containing a central vacuole. They are usually as "thick" as the cytoplasmic layer, and their outer dimensions are discernible in face view where vesicles lie adjacent to one another. The best analogy in this case is a single layer of soap bubbles, each being delimited by its junction with adjacent bubbles, though the soap film (cytoplasm) in face view is too thin to be resolved. Though a single vesicle may be extremely tortuous in shape, it is always an entire, three-dimensionally bounded unit. Solberg and Bald originally mentioned the possible relationship of this vesicular system with the endoplasmic reticulum e Rose and Pomerat' have published phase microscope images of animal cell

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endoplasmic reticulum which are remarkably similar to those of Solberg and Bald b Here again, certain obvious questions arise. If the cytoplasmic vesicles are phase microscopic images of the ER, then are the vesicle interiors synonomous with cisternae? Is each vesicle double membrane bounded? Do inter-vesicular pores exist? Are membrane-bounded ribosomes then found on the cytoplasmic surface of the vesicles? Vesicles are three dimensionally entire, and thus in ultra thin-section should always appear as a two-dimensionally closed unit. Yet, many electron micrographs of plant cells show sections of apparent sheets of ER. Does this indicate an artifact that is due to disruption of the vesicles (the ER?) during fixation? Use of buffer solutions and various fixation procedures does allow observation of phenomena that indicate the presence of a selectively permeable membrane around the vesicles of living plant cells. Also, not all cytopasm of any given cel is "vesiculate." Simple observacytoplasm of any given cell is "vesiculate." Simple observations such as these should provide researchers with hints roborated by electron microscopy.

Numerically, there are more spherosomes (sphaerosomes, or sphereosomes) in plant cells than any other type of organelle,' yet there are fewer research studies published on spherosomes than any other type of organelle. Their uniform morphology, light refractive properties, spherical size (ca. 0.41.1. diam), and ubiquitous distribution in plant cells place them in a category similar to mitochondria—they are essentially everywhere. They are mentioned very briefly in texts, the most extensive discussion now extant being in Frey-Wyssling and Miihlethaler's excellent book, "Ultrastructural Plant Cytology.' Research workers have attempted to ignore spherosomes ever since Hanstein's original description of them as "microsomes" in 1880 ("microsomes" of today are artifacts of the ultracentrifuge, thus the frequent semantic confusion). If they are produced by the ER, how is this accomplished by a closed, cisternal system? What enzymes do they contain beside

 

Plant Science Bulletin

Adolph Hecht, Editor

Department of Botany, Washington State University

Pullman, Washington 99163

Editorial Board

Harlan P. Banks, Cornell University

Norman H. Boke, University of Oklahoma

Sydney S. Greenfield, Rutgers University

William L. Stern, Smithsonian Institution

Erich Steiner, University of Michigan

March, 1967   Volume Thirteen   Number One

Changes of Address: Notify the Treasurer of the Botanical Society

of America, Inc., Dr. Harlan P. Banks, Department of Botany,

Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14850.

Subscriptions for libraries and persons not members of the Bo-

tanical Society of America are obtainable at the rate of $2.00 a

year.   Send orders with checks payable to "Botanical Society of

America, Inc." to the Treasurer.

Material submitted for publication should be typewritten, double-

spaced, and sent in duplicate to the Editor.   Copy should follow

the style of recent issues of the Bulletin.

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glycerol phosphatase? What limits their size and uniform morphology? Spherosomes generally move more rapidly than other organelles, ca. 15 cm./hr. They are more dense than mitochondria, but on the average smaller by volume. Commonly, rates of cyclosis of organelles are roughly inversely proportional to size of the organelle (I'm sure someone will show this to be an extreme statement). Yet, shouldn't density or mass be involved also? Especially should this be true if cyclosis is passive on the part of the organelle in question. By appropriate use of buffers, cyclosis in tobacco trichomes can be slowed, stopped, and restarted." Spherosomes are the last to be stopped, and the first to be restarted. Differential cyclosis is an exceedingly interesting phenomenon which has received little attention.

These three aspects of cytology, mobile phase protuberances of plastids, cytoplasmic vesicles, and spherosomes, are areas of botanical research that will no doubt blossom forth with critical concepts of living cytoplasm in the near future. To incite the curiosity of the reader, I might list a few more phenomena that are everyday botanical observations to phase microscopists, but are frequently passed off as abnormalities, oddities, aberrations, or artifacts by those who infrequently view living cells:

(a) non-random association of organelles; especially chloroplasts and nuclei, mitochondria and chloroplasts,

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spherosomes and chloroplasts, and mitochondria and spherosomes (expounded for many years by Dr. J. G. Bald).

  1. deep furrowing and invagination of the nuclear membrane.

  2. intra-nucleolar vacuolation and structural lability, as shown in phase cinematography by Dr. L. Jones of Oregon State University.

  3. oppositional cyclosis of organelles within the same "stream" involving stream diameters of less than 0.5p,.

  4. dynamics of transvacuolar cytoplasmic strands, their origin, displacement, organization, etc., such as P. G. Mahlberg's work."

  5. preferential cyclosis of mitochondria and spherosomes along the "gutter" like junction of adjacent cytoplasmic vesicles.

  6. developmental isolation of tricarboxylic acid cycle enzymes in mitochondria. This implies a rather specific code protein production mechanism.

Though authored by myself, this short note is largely derived from the inspired coaching and association with Dr. John G. Bald. Further understanding of ultrastructure and function will continue to advance only when all aspects of the cell are dealt with. This obviously includes the living cell as well as the fixed cell.

Literature Cited

  1. Honda, S. I., T. Hongladarom, and S. G. Wildman. Phase

microscopic observations of mitochondria and chloroplasts

in living spinach mesophyll cells. Fed. Proc. 20: 146. 1961.

  1. Honda, S. I., T. Hongladarom, and G. G. Laties. A new

isolation medium for plant organelles. Jour. Exp. Bot.

17: 460-472. 1966.

  1. Wildman, S. G., T. Hongladarom, and S. I. Honda. Chloroplasts and mitochondria in living plant cells: Cine-photomicrographic studies. Science 138: 434-436. 1962.

  2. Spencer, D., and S. G. Wildman. Observations on the structure of grana-containing chloroplasts and a proposed model of chloroplast structure. Austr. J. Biol. Sci. 15: 599-610. 1962.

  3. Hongladarom, T., S. I. Honda, and S. G. Wildman. Organelles in Living Plant Cells (16 mm. sound film). Educational Film Sales and Rentals, University Extension, University of California, Berkeley, California. 1965.

  4. Hongladarom, T., S. I. Honda, P. G. Grun, and S. G. Wildman. The fluid nature of the plastid stroma. Plant Physiol. 37: xli. 1962.

  5. Possingham, J. V., M. Vesk, and F. V. Mercer. The fine structure of leaf cells of manganese-deficient spinach. J. Ultrastruct. Res. 11:68-83. 1964.

  6. Solberg, R. A., and J. G. Bald. Cytoplasmic structure of healthy and TMV-infected living cells. Am. J. Bot. 49: 149-157. 1962.

  7. Rose, G. G., and C. M. Pomerat. Phase contrast observa-

tions of the endoplasmic reticulum in living tissue cultures.

Jour. Biophys. Biochem. Cytol. (Cell Biol.) 8: 423-430.

1960.

  1. Frey-Wyssling, A., and K. Miihlethaler. Ultrastrucrural Plant Cytology. Elsevier Publishing Co. 1965.

  2. Bald, J. G., and R. A. Solberg. Cytological reactions of normal and TMV-infected tobacco leaf cells to acid and alkaline solutions. Am. J. Bot. 51: 396-404. 1964.

  3. Mahlberg, P. G., and S. Venketeswaran. Phase-cinemicrographic observations on cultured cells. I. Formation of transvacuolar strands in Euphorbia marginata. Am. J. Bot. 50: 507-513. 1963.

Why Store Genetic Stocks?

Edwin James

Head, National Seed Storage Laboratory

Crops Research Division, Agricultural Research Service U.S. Department of Agriculture

Fort Collins, Colorado

One of the functions of the National Seed Storage Laboratory is the preservation of genetic stocks. The 52,000 ac-cessions now in storage include only 932 lots of seed which fall into this category. These are: 310 barley lines, 112 tomato mutants, 110 red pericarp lines of corn, and 400 radiation-induced mutants of oats. In the near future we should receive for storage 150 translocation stocks of barley. These total only a small fraction of such materials held at various locations throughout the country.

The conditions under which the genetic stocks are stored at various institutions may or may not be favorable for prolonged preservation. Where poor storage conditions exist, there is a definite possibility that much valuable material will lose viability. The well-documented Datura collection of the late A. F. Blakeslee of Smith College in Massachusetts is a striking example. This collection was transferred in 1966 to the National Seed Storage Laboratory. Sixty-nine lines were discarded because of lack of viability. An additional 243 lines will require immediate reincrease because they have very low germination percentages or because the quantities are so small that future distribution would be extremely limited. Fortunately, a number of people are interested in this collection, and a reincrease program is proposed for the summer of 1967. After the collection is brought up to satisfactory standards, it will be officially accepted by the National Seed Storage Laboratory, which will then have the responsibility for its maintenance.

We have recently been advised of the possible disposal of an Oenothera collection of historical as well as current interest to geneticists. Most of the seeds will probably be deposited in the National Seed Storage Laboratory, rather than be distributed to various individuals interested in the species. This will become a central source of supply from which researchers may obtain seeds, and those interested in a few specific genetic characters will not have to maintain their own seed stocks.

Since the establishment of the National Seed Storage Laboratory, we have given priority to seeds of economic importance. Collections of this type are now limited to varieties currently being released by federal and state experiment stations and commercial firms. To be of additional service to researchers, we will include the procurement and storage of basic genetic collections.

There are several advantages in storing such collections in the National Seed Storage Laboratory:

  1. If research is discontinued on a specific collection, or if an individual who is primarily interested in the collection retires, it will be preserved intact and its viability maintained.

  2. Seeds at the National Seed Storage Laboratory are

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available to all researchers and, on request, they can obtain an inventory of seed stocks on hand.

  1. The National Seed Storage Laboratory has the responsibility for reincreases of seed when there is a dangerous decline in viability or when stocks become depleted, owing to frequent seed distribution. When the National Seed Storage Laboratory was established, the planners realized that no individual would be capable of handling the reincreases of the complex materials which would eventually be in storage. Instead, the National Seed Storage Laboratory is authorized to have the increases done under contract with a competent individual or agency.

  2. The depositor is kept advised of the viability of the collection. Germination tests are run when seeds are received and at intervals while they are in storage.

  3. A collection will remain intact for future geneticists if the individual who developed it dies.

The geneticist does not lose control of a collection when it is placed in the National Seed Storage Laboratory. Although deposited seeds become public property, the donor can retain a portion of each seed lot for his personal use or for distribution. In cases of this kind, the National Seed Storage Laboratory would refer to the depositor all requests for seeds.

This offer of cooperation is extended to all those who have genetic collections. Anyone wishing to place stocks in storage at the National Seed Storage Laboratory should write to the Head, National Seed Storage Laboratory, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado 80521.

Personalia

Dr. Wilson N. Stewart, formerly of the University of Illinois, has been appointed Professor and Head of the Department of Botany at the University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

NOTES FROM THE EDITOR

On page seven of this issue we have printed a ballot for the election of a new Treasurer of the Botanical Society. Because neither the Secretary nor the Treasurer was able to attend the last Council Meeting, the fact that the term of the treasurer is about to expire was not appreciated, and hence the membership was canvassed only recently to obtain nominations for Treasurer. In accordance with the Bylaws of the Society this ballot will include the names of the two persons who received the highest number of votes in the member canvass plus the names of two additional candidates selected by the Election Committee. Members wishing to review this section of the Bylaws are referred to page 6 of the Plant Science Bulletin, Vol. 12, No. 3, for October, 1966.

Dr. Harlan Banks, Treasurer of the Society, has suggested that a procedural change with respect to dues of student members, adopted at the last Council Meeting, be brought to the attention of all members. Student Membership is being continued at $6.00 per year, but hence-forth membership at this "less than cost" rate will be limited to a maximum of four years.

Dawson Memorial Fund

The Smithsonian Institution has set up a "Dawson Memorial Fund for the Galapagos" in tribute to the late Dr. E. Yale Dawson, at the time of his death a curator in the Department of Botany of the Smithsonian. Dr. Dawson drowned in June, 1966, while collecting algae in the Red Sea near the town of Hurghada, Egypt. He had just begun an around-the-world trip to visit marine stations, meet algologists and marine scientists, and become better acquainted with worldwide activities in the field of algology. The culmination of this trip was to have been his participation in the meetings of the XI Pacific Science Congress in Tokyo last September.

One of Dr. Dawson's keen interests was the biota of the Galapagos Islands where he made several visits to observe and to collect plants. He was much impressed with the people and the unique environment in which they lived, and one of his goals was the preservation of this environment for the future. One avenue to accomplish this seemed the education of the Galapaguenos to their unusual opportunity, and he wrote a textbook for the elementary schools emphasizing this idea. The creation of the Charles Darwin Foundation for the Galapagos Is-lands, an international organization established under the auspices of UNESCO, provided another channel to forward his goals, and Dr. Dawson became Secretary for the Americas of the Foundation. This organization supports the Charles Darwin Research Station in the Galapagos which carries on research and conservation activities. Visiting scientists may stay and study here. Dr. Dawson maintained liaison with Mr. Roger Perry, its Director, and helped supply Station needs. Everything from parts for electric generators to an adding machine went through Dr. Dawson's offices in the Smithsonian bound for this remote Station.

To recognize Dr. Dawson's deep concern for the Galapagos, we have thought it appropriate to use the "Dawson Memorial -Fund" to purchase scientific books for the Station library on a continuing basis. Mr. Perry has agreed to act as librarian and make recommendations for books most useful to Station activities. We feel there may be others among Dr. Dawson's friends and colleagues who might wish to join in honoring him by participating in the Fund. Those wishing to do so may send contributions (checks payable to the Smithsonian Institution) to the Chairman, Department of Botany, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. 20560.

NEWS AND NOTES

International Conference on

Systematic Biology

The National Academy of Sciences, Division of Biology and Agriculture of the National Research Council, announces an International Conference on Systematic Biology. The Conference will be held at the University of Michigan on June 14-16, 1967, during its Sesquicentennial Celebra-

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tion. The program is being organized by a committee consisting of R. D. Alexander, L. Constance, J. O. Corliss, R. S. Cowan, W. R. Lockhart, E. Mayr, and C. G. Sibley, Chairman. Over thirty invited speakers and discussants, from throughout the world, will consider theoretical and applied aspects of populational, behavioral, biometrical, physiological, cytological, morphological, ecological, and molecular studies of plants, animals, and micro-organisms. For information on registration and accommodations write to Arnold G. Kluge, Local Chairman, International Conference on Systematic Biology, Department of Zoology, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48104, Area Code 313, Telephone 764-6219, by April 15, 1967.

Summer Seminars in Rocky Mountain National Park

Geology: June 19 through June 24, 1967

Instructor: Dr. M. E. McCallum

Field Identification of Plants: June 26 through July 1, 1967 Instructor: Mrs. Ruth Ashton Nelson assisted by Dr. Bettie E. Willard

Mountain Ecology.' July 3 through July 8, 1967

Instructor: Dr. Bettie E. Willard

Alpine Tundra Ecology: July 10 through July 15, 1967 Instructor: Dr. Bettie E. Willard

Fees for the seminars are $30.00 per week, $55.00 for two weeks, $80.00 for three weeks, $ 105.00 for four weeks. For further information write to Mr. Glenn D. Gallison, Executive Secretary, Rocky Mountain Nature Association, P.O. Box 147, Estes Park, Colorado 80517.

Environmental Health Fellowships

Applications for Environmental Health Fellowships are now being accepted for graduate study during the 1967-68 academic year at the Consolidated University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill and Raleigh campuses). This is a broad interdepartmental program designed to give students training for careers in research, teaching, and practice in environmental health. It is sponsored by the Departments of Biostatistics, Environmental Sciences and Engineering, and Epidemiology of the School of Public Health; the Departments of Botany, Chemistry, City and Regional Planning, Geology, and Zoology of the College of Arts and Sciences; the School of Medicine; and the Department of Food Science at North Carolina State University at Raleigh. Students will generally enroll in the department of their basic specialty and then select courses in other departments in order to obtain a broad under-standing of the problems of the environment and the application of their specialty to the solution of these problems. The fellowships are provided through the Institute for Environmental Health Studies and include tuition, fees, and a stipend. The amount of the stipend under these fellowships will be in accordance with current Public Health Service and University policy.

Further information may be obtained by writing the head of any of the sponsoring departments. All are located at Chapel Hill, North Carolina, except the Department of Food Science which is located at Raleigh, North Carolina.

Symposium on the Use of Isotopes and Radiation in Plant Pathology

The Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) are jointly organizing a symposium on the use of isotopes and radiation in plant pathology studies at the IAEA Headquarters from April 17 to 21, 1967. The general topics of the symposium are: physiology of parasitism, plant protection, pathogenesis, and techniques.

Darbaker Prize in Phycology for 1967

The committee on the Darbaker Prize of the Botanical Society of America will accept nominations for an award to be announced at the annual meeting of the Society at College Station, Texas, in 1967. Under the terms of the bequest, the award is to be made for meritorious work in the study of the algae. Persons not members of the Botanical Society are eligible for the award. The Committee will base its judgment primarily on the papers published by the nominee during the last two full calendar years previous to the closing date for nominations. At present, the award will be limited to residents of North America. Only papers published in the English language will be considered. The value of the Prize for 1967 will depend on the income from the trust fund but is expected to be about $250. Nominations for the 1967 award accompanied by a statement of the merits of the case and by reprints of the publications supporting the candidacy must be received by June 1, 1967, by the Chairman of the Committee, Dr. Robert F. Scagel, Department of Botany, University of British Columbia, Vancouver 8, British Columbia, Canada.

Flora North America Launched

Flora North America, as the project will be called, was officially launched on January 30, 1967 when the newly formed Editorial Committee held its first meeting at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. This three-day meeting, convened by William L. Stern (Smithsonian), Chairman pro terra. of the Steering Committee, was attended by all members of the Editorial Committee: Peter H. Raven, Chairman, Stanford University; Stanwyn G. Shetler, Secretary, Smithsonian Institution; John H. Beaman, Michigan State University; Kenton L. Chambers, Oregon State University; Robert Kral, Vanderbilt University; Walter H. Lewis, Missouri Botanical Garden; John T. Mickel, Iowa State University; Roy L. Taylor, Canada Department of Agriculture, Ottawa; and John H. Thomas, Stanford University.

Also attending were Robert F. Thorne (Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden), Chairman of the Advisory Council, and Vernon H. Heywood (University of Liverpool), Secretary of Flora Europaea, who Served as a consultant in the discussions and gave a concluding public lecture, "Flora Europaea, Its Conception and History," on February 1. The purpose of the project is to prepare a concise diagnostic manual to the vascular plants of the continental United States, Canada, and Greenland, and the Editorial Committee dealt at least in a preliminary way with a

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large range of questions concerning the roles of the respective committees, the functioning of the Editorial Committee and its secretariat, the solicitation of authors and advisors, and the format, arrangement, timetable, and funding for Flora North America. It is expected that the first twelve to eighteen months will be occupied getting the project fully organized and the working procedures implemented. This will be followed by the second phase of intensive writing and editing for the first volume. Tentatively, four volumes, followed by a fifth comprising a theoretical symposium on the North America flora, are anticipated. The whole effort is expected to last from twelve to fifteen years. A full progress report on Flora North America will be published at an early date. The Editorial Committee will convene its next meeting at College Station, Texas, in August, 1967, when the American Institute of Biological Sciences holds its annual meetings at the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas. The first meeting was financed by the Smithsonian Office of Systematics (Richard S. Cowan, Director).

Stanwyn G. Shetler

Smithsonian Institution

Washington, D.C. 20560

Senior Fulbright-Hays Awards for 1968-69

Applications are now being accepted for Fulbright-Hays appointments for university lecturing and advanced re-search abroad during 1968-69. It is expected that specialists in various of the biological sciences will receive appointments in about twenty countries. Under the Fulbright program, such specialists have this year been serving as lecturers in the Republic of China, Finland, Honduras, Iran, Malaysia, Peru, Thailand, the United Arab Republic, and Uruguay, and they have in recent years held awards for research in Australia, Austria, Belgium, France, India, Italy, Japan, Nepal, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Nor-way, Portugal, and the United Arab Republic.

For lecturing awards under the 1968-69 program, application before May 1, 1967 is strongly recommended. The deadline for research applications is June 1, 1967.

Application forms, a list of openings in the biological sciences, and details on the terms of awards for particular countries are available from the Committee on International Exchange of Persons, 2101 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20418.

Botanical Society Committees

(With expiration dates)

Committee on Corresponding Members* Chairman (1967): Harold C. Bold (1969) Aaron J. Sharp (1968)

Paul J. Kramer (1967)

Membership Committee*

Chairman (1967): Aaron J. Sharp

Subcommittee Chairmen: Council Representatives from the Geographical Sections

Darbaker Prize*

Chairman (1967): Robert F. Scagel (1969) University of British Columbia

Paul Green (1967) University of Pennsylvania Mary Belle Allen (1967) University of Alaska Frank R. Trainor (1970) University of Connecticut Richard D. Wood (1971) University of Rhode Island

Merit Awards Committee*

Chairman (1967): William D. Billings (1967)

A. S. Foster (1968)

Carlos O. Miller (1969) Ex officio: President

New York Botanical Garden Award

Chairman (1967): R. B. Channell

Theodore Delevoryas Reed Rollins

Kenneth B. Raper

Education Committee* Chairman: S. N. Postlethwait Harriet B. Creighton E. C. Clebsch

R. B. Channell

Robert M. Page

Russell B. Stevens

C. E. Taft

Richard Klein

Ex officiis: President; Secretary; Secretary Teaching Section; Editor, P.S.B.; Rep. to AAAS Coop. Committee

Election Committee*

Chairman (1967): Elsie Quarterman (1967)

David Bierhorst (1968) C. C. Bowen (1969) Leonard Machlis (1970)

Conservation Committee* Chairman (1967) : Hugh Iltis Aaron J. Sharp

Richard Goodwin

John Thomson

Ourie Loucks

* Standing Committees

Botanical Society Officers for 1967

President: Ralph Emerson

Department of Botany, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720

Vice-President: Arthur Galston

Department of Biology, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520

Secretary: Richard C. Starr (1965-69)

Department of Botany, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47401

Treasurer: Harlan P. Banks (1965-67)

Department of Botany, 214 Plant Sciences Bldg., Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14850

Program Director: C. Ritchie Bell (1967-69)

Department of Botany, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27515

Editorial Committee: Harlan Lewis (1965-67)

Department of Botany, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90024

Anton Lang (1966-68)

Plant Research Laboratory, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48823

William Stern (1967-69)

Department of Botany, Smithsonian Institution,

Washington, D.C. 20560

Editor, American Journal of Botany: Charles Heimsch Department of Botany, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio 45056 Editor, Plant Science Bulletin: Adolph Hecht

Department of Botany, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington 99163

Business Manager, American Journal of Botany: Lawrence J. Crockett

The City College, University of the City of New York, Convent Avenue and 139th Street, New York, New York 10031

Sectional Officers and Council Members for 1967*

Past President, 1966: *Harold C. Bold

Department of Botany, The University of Texas, Austin, Texas 78712

Past President, 1965: *Aaron J. Sharp

Department of Botany, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee 37916

Past President, 1964: *Paul J. Kramer

Department of Botany, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27706

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Developmental Section

Chairman (1966-68): *Walter R. Tulecke

Boyce Thompson Institute, 1086 North Broadway, Yonkers. New Ydrk 10701

Vice-Chairman (1966-68): Watson M. Laetsch

Department of Botany, University of California, Berkeley. California 94720

Secretary (1966-69): William T. Jackson

Department of Biological Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755

General Section:

Chairman (1967): William Millington

Department of Biology, Marquette University. Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53233

Vice-Chairman (1967): Robert Tolbert

Natural Science Department, Moorhead State College, Moorhead. Minnesota 56560

Secretary-Treasurer (1966-69): *David Bierhorst

Department of Botany, Cornell University, Ithaca. New York 14850

Historical Section

Chairman (1967): Joseph Ewan

Department of Biology, Tulane University. New Orleans, Louisiana 70118

Vice-Chairman (1967): Edmund Berkeley

Department of Biology, University of North Carolina, Greensboro, North Carolina 27412

Secretary-Treasurer (1966-69): *Jerry W. Stannard Department of History, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80304

Microbiological Section

Chairman (1967): Howard Whisler

Department of Botany, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98105

Vice-Chairman (1967): O. R. Collins

Department of Biology, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan 48202

Secretary (1966-69) : Dorothy Fennell

American Type Culture Collection, Rockville, Maryland 20852 Representative to the Council (1966-69): *A. W. Barksdale The New York Botanical Garden, Bronx Park, New York 10458

Paleobotanical Section

Chairman (1967): Gilbert A. Leisman

Biology Department, Kansas State Teachers College, Emporia, Kansas 66802

Secretary-Treasurer (1966-68): *Donald A. Eggert Department of Botany, State University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52240

Phycological Section

Chairman (1967): Walter R. Herndon

Department of Botany, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee 37916

Secretary (1965-67): *Bruce C. Parker

Department of Botany, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri 63130

Physiological Section

Representative (1967) :   

Systematic Section

Chairman (1967): *Kenton L. Chambers

Department of Botany, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331

Secretary (1967): Lorin I. Nevling, Jr.

Gray Herbarium, 22 Divinity Avenue, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138

Teaching Section

Chairman (1967): Helena A. Miller

Duquesne University, Department of Biology, Pittsburg, Pennsylvania 15219

Vice-Chairman (1967): L. Wallace Miller

Division of Natural Sciences, Chico State College, Chico. California 95926

Secretary (1967): *J. Louis Martens

Department of Biology, Illinois State University, Normal, Illinois 61761

tCentral States Section

Chairman (1967) : *Albert S. Rouffa

Division of Biological Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago Circle, Chicago, Illinois 60680

Vice-Chairman (1967): Robert B. Kaul

Department of Botany, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Nebraska 68508

Secretary (1967): Paul L. Redfearn, Jr.

Department of Biology, Southwest Missouri State College, Springfield. Missouri 65802

Northeastern Section

Chairman (1967): *Calvin Heusser

American Geographical Society, Broadway at 156th Street, New York, New York 10032

Secretary-Treasurer (1966-68): Robert K. Zuck

Department of Botany, Drew University, Madison, New Jersey

Pacific Section

Chairman (1967): Arthur R. Kruckeberg

Department of Botany, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98105

Vice-Chairman (1967): H. P. Thompson

Department of Botany, University of California, Los Angeles. California 90024

Secretary-Treasurer (1966-69) : *Walter M. Laersch Department of Botany, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720

Southeastern Section

Chairman (1967): Leland Shanor

Department of Biological Sciences, Florida State University, Box 1562, Tallahassee, Florida

Secretary (1964-67) : *W. H. Murdy

Department of Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30322

*Those persons so marked with an (*) are members of the Council. The Council also includes the Officers of the Society except those elected to the Editorial Committee.

t The above officers were for 1966 (Central States Section) but will continue to serve in 1967 until an election can take place.

7

Plant Science Bulletin

Developmental Section

Chairman (1966-68): *Walter R. Tulecke

Boyce Thompson Institute, 1086 North Broadway, Yonkers, New Ycirk 10701

Vice-Chairman (1966-68): Watson M. Laetsch Department of Botany, University of California, Berkeley. California 94720

Secretary (1966-69): William T. Jackson

Department of Biological Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755 General Section:

Chairman (1967): William Millington

Department of Biology, Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53233

Vice-Chairman (1967): Robert Tolbert

Natural Science Department, Moorhead State College, Moorhead, Minnesota 56560

Secretary-Treasurer (1966-69): *David Bierhorst

Department of Botany, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14850

Historical Section

Chairman (1967) : Joseph Ewan

Department of Biology, Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana 70118

Vice-Chairman (1967) : Edmund Berkeley

Department of Biology, University of North Carolina, Greensboro, North. Carolina 27412 Secretary-Treasurer (1966-69): *Jerry W. Stannard Department of History, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80304

Microbiological Section

Chairman (1967) : Howard Whisler

Department of Botany, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98105

Vice-Chairman (1967) : O. R. Collins

Department of Biology, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan 48202

Secretary (1966-69): Dorothy Fennell

American Type Culture Collection, Rockville, Maryland 20852 Representative to the Council (1966-69): *A. W. Barksdale The New York Botanical Garden, Bronx Park, New York 10458

Paleobotanical Section

Chairman (1967): Gilbert A. Leisman

Biology Department, Kansas State Teachers College, Emporia, Kansas 66802

Secretary-Treasurer (1966-68) : *Donald A. Eggert Department of Botany, State University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52240

Phycological Section

Chairman (1967): Walter R. Herndon

Department of Botany, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee 37916

Secretary (1965-67): *Bruce C. Parker

Department of Botany, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri 63130

Physiological Section

Representative (1967):   

Systematic Section

Chairman (1967) : *Kenton L. Chambers

Department of Botany, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331

Secretary (1967): Lorin I. Nevling, Jr.

Gray Herbarium, 22 Divinity Avenue, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138

Teaching Section

Chairman (1967): Helena A. Miller

Duquesne University, Department of Biology, Pittsburg, Pennsylvania 15219

Vice-Chairman (1967): L. Wallace Miller

Division of Natural Sciences, Chico State College, Chico, California 95926

Secretary (1967): *J. Louis Martens

Department of Biology, Illinois State University, Normal, Illinois 61761

tCentral States Section

Chairman (1967) : *Albert S. Rouffa

Division of Biological Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago Circle, Chicago, Illinois 60680

Vice-Chairman (1967): Robert B. Kaul

Department of Botany, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Nebraska 68508

Secretary (1967): Paul L. Redfearn, Jr.

Department of Biology, Southwest Missouri State College, Springfield, Missouri 65802

Northeastern Section

Chairman (1967): *Calvin Heusser

American Geographical Society, Broadway at 156th Street, New York, New York 10032

Secretary-Treasurer (1966-68): Robert K. Zuck

Department of Botany, Drew University, Madison, New Jersey

Pacific Section

Chairman (1967): Arthur R. Kruckeberg

Department of Botany, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98105

Vice-Chairman (1967): H. P. Thompson

Department of Botany, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90024

Secretary-Treasurer (1966-69) : *Walter M. Laetsch Department of Botany, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720

Southeastern Section

Chairman (1967) : Leland Shanor

Department of Biological Sciences, Florida State University, Box 1562, Tallahassee, Florida

Secretary (1964-67) : *W. H. Murdy

Department of Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30322

*Those persons so marked with an (*) are members of the Council. The Council also includes the Officers of the Society except those elected to the Editorial Committee.

t The above officers were for 1966 (Central States Section) but will continue to serve in 1967 until an election can take place.

8

Richard Krausel 1890-1966

Professor Dr. Dr. h.c. Richard Krāusel, a German paleobotanist with a world-wide reputation, died on November 25, 1966, after a brief illness. Professor Krāusel was the director of the Division of Botany-Paleobotany of the Senckenberg Natural History Museum and Research Institute in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, and maintained a vigorous schedule of research, writing, teaching, and administrative duties until his death.

Richard Krāusel was born August 29, 1890, in Breslau. He studied botany and paleobotany at the University of Breslau under Professor Ferdinand Pax who was working on a revision of the Tertiary flora of Schossnitz in Silesia and assigned the study of the fossil woods to Krāusel. His dissertation, "Beitrāge zur Kenntnis der Holzer aus der schlesischen Braunkohle," is still an important work in the study of Tertiary woods, an area of paleobotany to which he subsequently contributed several publications. During the First World War he served first as a soldier and later as a geologist. In 1920 Professor Krāusel be-came associated with the University of Frankfurt and the Senckenberg Museum. He taught paleobotany at the Geological Institute of the University. At the Senckenberg Museum he established a fine collection of fossil plant material and was named director of both this collection and the recent botanical collections of the Museum.

During the Second World War his fossil plant collections were moved to a castle near Frankfurt for protection. It was a great disappointment to Professor Krāusel when the castle was demolished during the last days of the war and all of the type material of his earlier work and many other valuable fossils were completely destroyed. How-ever, he energetically rebuilt his research collection making collecting trips as far afield as South and Southwest Africa (1953-54, 1963), Brazil (1956-57), and India (1960-61), where he taught at the Birbal Sahni Institute of Paleobotany in Lucknow. Today the Senckenberg Museum has a legacy of a fine collection of fossil plants.

Professor Krāusel was a prodigious researcher and writer. He published over 250 papers, many of which were major contributions to paleobotany, and a well-known semi-popular paleobotanical book, Versunkene

Floren. His published works cover a wide spectrum of botanical and paleobotanical subjects and include major contributions on such varied topics as early land plants of the Devonian, Mesozoic floras of Europe, cuticles of Tertiary angiosperm leaves, and fossil angiosperm and coniferous wood. Several of Krāusel's major publications on Devonian plants and Tertiary angiosperm leaf cuticles were published in joint authorship with his colleague and friend, Dr. Hermann Weyland.

Professor Krāusel's research brought him world-wide recognition, and during his travels and his attendance at six international botanical congresses he met and became friends with paleobotanists from many countries.

Professor Krāusel was twice president of the Palāontologischen Gesellschaft, vice president of the Deutschen Botanischen Gesellschaft, corresponding member of the Botanical Society of America, honorary member of the International Association of Paleobotany and the Paleobotanical Society of India, and a member of the Deutschen Academy of Naturforscher (Leopoldina). In 1963 the University of Durham in Newcastle upon Tyne presented him with a "Doctor honoris cause." The Senckenberg Museum honored Professor Krāusel on his 60th birthday with the Eiserne Senckenberg-Medaille and on his 70th birthday with a Richard Krause! Festschrift volume of the museum's journal, Senckenbergiana Lethaea.

The life of Richard Krāusel was devoted to his work, and for over fifty years he actively contributed to our understanding of the fossil record of plants. His kind friendship and warm interest will long be remembered by his colleagues and students, and his contributions to paleobotany will continue to influence all who are concerned with plants of the past.

David L. Ditcher Indiana University

Raymond J. Pool 1882-1967

Professor Raymond J. Pool died on February 2, 1967, following a long illness. Dr. Pool was one of America's leading botanists, and served as chairman of the Botany Department at the University of Nebraska from 1915 until 1948.

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