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Lab #4

Date: 9/28/2023

Title: Measurement & Manipulation: Distribution of Tissues Within The Leaf

Objective: To measure and manipulate and calculate the magnification of the tissue within the

lower epidermis of a leaf.

Materials:

● Typing Sheet

● Compass

● Pencil

● Leaf

● Ruler

● Microscope

● Camera

● Dye

● Slide

● Tweezer

● Scalpel

● Petri dish

Procedures:

1. A leaf was picked from a tree.

2. The lower part of the leaf was ripped off by hand.

3. A thin transverse section of the lower epidermis of the leaf was then cut with a scalpel.

4. The thin transverse section of the leaf was stained with a drop of methylene blue.
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5. The methylene blue was then washed off from the specimen and mounted onto a slide

afterwards.

6. The Specimen was then viewed under the microscope at the highest power.

7. What was observed was then drawn into a 10cm diameter on a typing sheet.

8. The drawing was then labeled.

9. The magnification was then calculated and a title was inserted under the drawing.

Results and Observation:

Discussion: The different structures in which the experimenter observed in the lower epidermis

of the leaf were the guard cells, cell wall, stoma and air space. Guard cells surround the stoma in

order to protect it. They help with the optimization of gas exchange when the presence of water

is too much. Guard cells also open and close the stoma to manage the rate of transpiration. The

cell wall protects what comes in and out and supports the structure of the leaf/plant. The stoma

also manages gas exchange and water movement through transpiration. Stoma usually change in

shape and size due to environmental factors that they try to alter. The airspaces help with

photosynthesis by having both carbon dioxide and oxygen diffuse inside the leaf. Air spaces also

increase the efficiency of gas exchange and allow plants to settle on land.

Source of Error:

The experimenter had a hard time getting the thin transverse section of the lower epidermis of

the leaf so a new leaf was retrieved for better result. The specimen was also folding everytime

the experimenter would move the stage around.

Limitations:

The microscope wasn’t showing the guard cells too clearly even after adjusting the light source

and the fine focus more than once. However what was showing is what the experimenter had to

work with.

Conclusion:
Third person...do not need to say the experimenter

The experimenter found this lab activity a bit more challenging compared to previous lab

sessions. There was a time span that was set to find the guard cells of the lower epidermis of the

leaf and there was a bit of a dilemma with the clearness of the specimen and the specimen itself

folding on its own when trying to move the stage around. Nevertheless, both measurements and

calculations were carried out for the specimen without too much hassle. The calculated
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magnification of the lower epidermis of the leaf was 325x. In order to get a perfect view of the

guard cells it is important to make sure that the dye isn’t overpowering everything else. A

semi-thick leaf would be recommendable for a good thin transverse of the lower epidermis.
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References

The Plant Cell Wall- Molecular Biology of the Cell. (n.d). NCBI.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK26928/#:~:text=The%20plant%20cell%20wall%20thu

s,of%20fluid%20in%20the%20plant.

State the Main Function of: Guard Cells. (n.d.). BYUJU’S.

https://byjus.com/question-answer/state-the-main-function-of-guard-cells/#:~:text=The%20guard

%20cells%20surround%20each,has%20an%20excess%20of%20water.

Caballero, A., and Roca, E. (2018, May 7). The Importance of Stomata – Plant Physiology.

https://plantphysiologyblog.com/2018/05/07/the-importance-of-stomata-2/

C. D. (2021, December 6). Riddled with holes: Understanding air space formation in plant

leaves. NCBI.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8675916/#:~:text=Leaf%20air%20spaces%20in

crease%20the,resilience%20to%20flooding%20%5B3%5D.
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Appendix

Image Showing Guard Cells in the Lower Epidermis of a Leaf

title at the bottom and double underlined

Mark Scheme

Correct manipulation of apparatus (M/M)

Use the blade to cut the section of lower epidermis [2]

Transfer sections using tweezers [2]

Use a fine drop of Methylene Blue stain [2]

Manipulate the cover slip over the specimen [2]

Use the microscope to focus image under medium (10x) [2]

Use the microscope to focus the image under high (40x) [2]

Drawing – (DR)

Clarity and Accuracy:

Clear, accurate representation of specimen [2] 2

Looks like specimen at magnification [1] 1

Annotations/Labels:

Lines drawn with ruler in pencil, not crossing [1] 1

Lines touching labeled structure, no arrowheads [1] 9.5-0.5 lab format =9/12
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Accurate labels and annotations [1] 0.5

Acceptable Title:

Accurate description of specimen, below drawing, in caps, underlined [1] 1

Calculate accurate magnification [1] 1