TITLE:
Morphometry of Lipid Bodies in Embryo, Kernel and Mesocarp of Oil Palm: Its Relationship to Yield
AUTHORS:
Li Sim Ho, Anusha Nair, Hirzun Mohd Yusof, Harikrishna Kulaveerasingam, Mohamad Sanusi Jangi
KEYWORDS:
Oil Palm; Lipid Body; Oil Yield; Microscopy
JOURNAL NAME:
American Journal of Plant Sciences,
Vol.5 No.9,
April
3,
2014
ABSTRACT: Oil palm drupe which has thick fleshy mesocarp contains rich oil, where
storage of oil in it can make up to 80% of its dry mass [1]. Ongoing research
interest in oil palms has been focused on the mechanisms of oil production in
oil palm drupes, while investigation on the ultrastructural morphometry of its
oil storage entity, namely lipid body, has received limited attention. By
employing microscopy techniques, this study investigated the morphometric of
lipid bodies in the mesocarp, kernel and embryo of oil palms drupes at 22
week-after-anthesis (WAA). This study also investigated the relationship
between the size of lipid bodies and oil yield of oil palms at the same state
of maturity (22 WAA). The structural arrangements of lipid bodies were found to
be different among embryo, kernel and mesocarp of oil palms. It was also found
that the size of lipid bodies of mesocarp of oil palms was larger compared to
other crops. Lipid bodies in both embryo and mesocarp were statistically shown
to be larger in low oil-yielding palms.