Confocal Raman microscopy was used to illustrate changes of molecular composition in secondary plant cell wall tissues of poplar (Populus nigra × Populus deltoids) wood. Two-dimensional spectral maps were acquired and chemical images calculated by integrating the intensity of characteristic spectral bands. This enabled direct visualization of the spatial variation of the lignin content without any chemical treatment or staining of the cell wall. A small (0.5 μm) lignified border toward the lumen was observed in the gelatinous layer of poplar tension wood. The variable orientation of the cellulose was also characterized, leading to visualization of the S1 layer with dimensions smaller than 0.5 μm. Scanning Raman microscopy was thus shown to be a powerful, nondestructive tool for imaging changes in molecular cell wall organization with high spatial resolution.

To gain a better understanding on structure, chemical composition and properties of plant cells, tissues and organs several microscopic, chemical and physical methods have been applied during the last years. However, a knowledge gap exists about the location, quantity and structural arrangement of molecules in the native sample or what happens on the molecular level when samples are chemically or mechanically treated or how they respond to mechanical stress. These questions need to be answered to optimise utilization of plants in food industry and pharmacy and to understand structure‐function relationships of plant cells to learn from natures unique. Advances in combining microscopy with Raman spectroscopy have tackled this problem in a non‐invasive way and provide chemical and structural information in situ without any staining or complicated sample preparation. In this review the different Raman techniques (e.g. near infrared Fourier Transform Raman spectroscopy (NIR‐FT), resonance Raman spectroscopy, surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy) are briefly described before approaches in plant science are summarised. Investigations on structural cell wall components, valuable plant substances, metabolites and inorganic substances are included with emphasis on Raman imaging. The introduction of the NIR‐FT‐Raman technique led to many applications on green plant material by eliminating the problem of sample fluorescence. For mapping and imaging of whole plant organs (seeds, fruits, leaves) the lateral resolution (~10 μm) of the NIR‐FT technique is adequate, whereas for investigations on the lower hierarchical level of cells and cell walls the high resolution gained with a visible laser based system is needed. Examples on high resolution Raman imaging are given on wood cells, showing that changes in chemistry and orientation can be followed within and between different cell wall layers having dimensions smaller than 1 μm. In addition imaging the distribution of amorphous silica is shown on horsetail tissue, including an area scan from a cross section as well as a depth profiling within a silica rich knob of the outer stem wall.

Surface curvature both emerges from, and influences the behavior of, living objects at length scales ranging from cell membranes to single cells to tissues and organs. The relevance of surface curvature in biology is supported by numerous experimental and theoretical investigations in recent years. In this review, first, a brief introduction to the key ideas of surface curvature in the context of biological systems is given and the challenges that arise when measuring surface curvature are discussed. Giving an overview of the emergence of curvature in biological systems, its significance at different length scales becomes apparent. On the other hand, summarizing current findings also shows that both single cells and entire cell sheets, tissues or organisms respond to curvature by modulating their shape and their migration behavior. Finally, the interplay between the distribution of morphogens or micro‐organisms and the emergence of curvature across length scales is addressed with examples demonstrating these key mechanistic principles of morphogenesis. Overall, this review highlights that curved interfaces are not merely a passive by‐product of the chemical, biological, and mechanical processes but that curvature acts also as a signal that co‐determines these processes.