A novel preparation of microcast for wood micromorphology using polydimethylsiloxane without digesting cell wall

摘要

We developed a novel method for preparation of microcasts of wood with silicone elastomer (polydimethylsiloxane; PDMS). PDMS was so flexible and elastic that it was possible to isolate the microcasts by simply pulling them out of the mold without digesting the cell wall after the resin was cured for 2 days at room temperature. The casts of some cell wall sculptures, such as spiral thickenings and bordered pits, had high fidelity. By contrast, the casts of distinctly bordered pits and tails of vessel elements were often deformed or broken. Bars of scalariform perforation plates were always torn and remained in the resin casts. The microcast preparation using PDMS is useful for easy investigation of cell wall sculptures. It might be also useful for microfractography of bars of scalariform perforation plates.