Ultrastructural changes in rust-infected tissues of flax and sunflower

Similar changes occurred in the ultrastructure of host cell organelles in the rust-infected tissues of both flax and sunflower. Up to the onset of sporulation at 8 days after inoculation the only major alteration in cell structure was a marked tendency for the cell organelles to be aggregated around the intracellular fungal haustorium and an accumulation of starch in the plastids. During sporulation, however, some striking changes occurred in the structure of plastids, mitochondria, and microbodies. Eleven days after inoculation, in a zone of host tissue adjacent to the rust pustule, the plastids no longer contained starch and varied in structure even within a single cell. Some were similar to normal chloroplasts, others had larger grana, and some bore a close resemblance to chromoplasts. In sunflower, but not in flax, mitochondria contained atypical plate-like cristae in addition to the usual vesiculate type. The micro-bodies of both plant species all contained crystalline cores in contrast to earlier stages in the disease where crystals were only occasionally detected. The plastids were also altered considerably in another zone of tissue situated beneath the rust pustule. In some plastids the thylakoids extended along their long axis, forming several large grana, and in others the large grana were interconnected by lamellae arranged in a vesicular or tubular configuration. Frequently the starch grains in these plastids were broken down into small rosettes of darkly staining particles with an appearance similar to that of animal glycogen.