Meristematic cells

Meristematic cells are undifferentiated, totipotent stem cells found in plant meristems, such as apical, lateral, and intercalary regions at shoot and root tips.[1][2][4] They continuously divide mitotically to produce new cells, with one daughter cell remaining undifferentiated to sustain the meristem and the other differentiating into specialized tissues like epidermis, vascular elements, or ground tissue.[1][3][7] These cells are characterized by small size, thin primary cell walls, dense protoplasm, prominent nuclei, and absence of vacuoles or mature plastids.[1][2][5] Essential for primary growth (lengthening) via apical meristems and secondary growth (girth increase) via lateral meristems like vascular cambium, they enable plant organ formation, wound healing, and lifelong indeterminate growth.[1][4][9] Regulated by signaling pathways involving genes like WUSCHEL and CLAVATA in model plants such as Arabidopsis, they maintain stem cell reservoirs in zones like the central zone.[1] Meristematic cells are not molecular targets like receptors or enzymes in therapeutic contexts; they represent a type of plant tissue rather than a specific biomolecule for drug intervention, with no known human diseases directly linked or drugs targeting them.[1][6]

Other names

Meristem cells