Posidonia oceanica (L.) Delile: A Structural Study of the Photosynthetic Apparatus

Abstract. P. oceanica forms broad prairies which completely surround the island of Ischia. This is a histochemical and ultrastructural study of the photosynthetic apparatus of the Posidonia plant. In the leaf, epidermal cells have a porous region underneath the cuticle and contain most of the chloroplasts. Fiber bundles run hypodermally and phenol storing cells are present in the mesophyll. Chloroplast ontogenesis is characterized by juvenile stages with provesicular bodies. Sea depth apparently affects some morphological features of the photosynthetic apparatus, like leaf blade thickness, phenolic cell and hypodermal fiber frequency.