Development of cambial variant and parenchyma proliferation in Hewittia malabarica (Convolvulaceae) from India and South Africa

Abstract Members of the Convolvulaceae are characterized by the climbing habit and occurrence of variant secondary growth. From a histological perspective, the genus Ipomoea L. is the most extensively studied, while other genera have been less studied. Here, stem anatomy of the least studied genus in the family, Hewittia Wight & Arn., represented by Hewittia malabarica (L.) Suresh was investigated using classical histological techniques. In both the samples collected from India and South Africa, stem thickness increased by developing different types of cambial variants such as: neo-formed vascular cylinders, parenchyma proliferation at the phloem wedges, ray-derived cambia from dilating phloem rays, internal cambium, intra- and interxylary phloem. Neo-formed vascular cylinders develop from the parenchyma cells external to the phloem as a meristemoid in thick stems and later in dilating ray cells. With the increase in stem diameter, cells of the phloem wedges showed proliferation by meristematic activity, which form a connection with the cortex by rupturing the primary tissue ring of eustele. Subsequently, development of cambium in phloem wedges and deposition of its derivatives increased the tangential width of rays. Mature thick stems (25–30 mm) give rise to a fissured stem. Intraxylary (internal) phloem development on the pith margin was observed from primary growth onwards and in thick stems secondary intraxylary phloem developed from the internal cambium. Internal cambium is functionally bidirectional and produces secondary xylem internally and secondary phloem externally. In all the samples, patches of unlignified parenchyma embedded within the secondary xylem dedifferentiate and mature into interxylary phloem with the increasing age. Development of cambial variant and structure of the secondary xylem is correlated with the functional significance of the climbing habit.