Vegetos
(An International Journal of Plant Research & Biotechnology)
Micromorphology and histochemical secretion profiling of glandular trichomes in the leaf and stem epidermis of Physalis angulata L. (Solanaceae)
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Research Articles | Published: 21 November, 2025
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Keywords: Epidermis micromorphology, Cytochemical, Glandular trichome, Herbal medicine, Light microscopy
Abstract
Physalis angulata is a medicinal plant used by many local tribes in Indonesia and other countries due to its pharmacological potential, such as anti-infection, anti-inflammation, anti-cancer, and anti-diabetic. However, the micromorphological and histochemical parameters of the leaf and stem epidermis of P. angulata are still very limited. We conducted this research for micromorphological analysis to identify cell parts, especially leaves and stems, as well as histochemistry to explore the secretory structures and their accumulation of the main secretion compounds. Fresh incisions of organs using razor blades followed standard plant anatomy procedures and were stained using metachromatic reagents. Histochemical analysis used various specific reagents to detect their secretory structures and metabolite accumulation. All observations were made using a light microscope. The epidermis micromorphology results indicated that glandular and non-glandular trichomes are among the leaves and stems of this species. The glandular trichomes of both organs are capitate with long and short stalks, while the non-glandular trichomes are composed of 1–3 apical cells. The secretory structure in the form of glandular trichomes of this plant contains alkaloids, phenolics, lipids, and essential oils. The results of this study indicate that the leaves and stems are potential sources of medicinal raw materials from this species and a guide for extracting specific plant parts to obtain the desired main secretion compounds, as well as valuable information material for botanical identification of this species.
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Author Information
Department of Pharmaceutical Biology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Almarisah Madani University, Makassar, Indonesia