Mauritia flexuosa palms inhabit wetland environments in the dry, seasonal Brazilian savanna (Cerrado) and produce mucilaginous secretions in the stem and petiole that have a medicinal value. The present study sought to characterize the chemical natures of those secretions and to describe the anatomical structures involved in their synthesis. Chemical analyzes of the secretions, anatomical, histochemical analyses, and electron microscopy studies were performed on the roots, stipes, petioles, and leaf blades. Stipe and petiole secretions are similar, and rich in cell wall polysaccharides and pectic compounds such as rhamnose, arabinose, xylose, mannose, galactose, and glucose, which are hydrophilic largely due to their hydroxyl and carboxylate groups. Mucilaginous secretions accumulate in the lumens of vessel elements and sclerenchyma fibers of the root, stipe, petiole, and foliar veins; their synthesis involves cell wall loosening and the activities of dictyosomes. The outer faces of the cell walls of the parenchyma tissue in the mesophyll expand to form pockets that rupture and release pectocellulose substances into the intercellular spaces. The presence of mucilage in the xylem, extending from the roots to the leaf veins and continuous with the leaf apoplast, and sub-stomatal chambers suggest a strategy for plant water economy.

中文翻译：

---

沼泽棕榈 Mauritia flexuosa Lf（槟榔科）木质部和叶质外体中的粘液分泌物

毛里求斯棕榈树栖息在干燥的季节性巴西稀树草原 (Cerrado) 的湿地环境中，并在茎和叶柄中产生具有药用价值的粘液性分泌物。本研究试图描述这些分泌物的化学性质并描述其合成所涉及的解剖结构。对根、叶柄、叶柄和叶片进行分泌物的化学分析、解剖学、组织化学分析和电子显微镜研究。菌柄和叶柄的分泌物相似，富含细胞壁多糖和果胶化合物，如鼠李糖、阿拉伯糖、木糖、甘露糖、半乳糖和葡萄糖，它们主要是由于它们的羟基和羧酸酯基团而具有亲水性。粘液性分泌物积聚在血管元素的管腔和根、柄、叶柄和叶脉；它们的合成涉及细胞壁松动和网状体的活动。叶肉中薄壁组织细胞壁的外表面膨胀形成口袋，这些口袋破裂并将果胶纤维素物质释放到细胞间隙中。木质部粘液的存在，从根部延伸到叶脉并与叶质外体连续，以及亚气孔室表明植物水分经济的策略。