BOTANY WITH THE BASICS OF HYDROBOTANY (AQUATIC PLANTS OF UKRAINE) - B.Ye. Yakubenko - 2011

V. CYTOLOGY. THE CONCEPT OF THE CELL

Structure of the Plant Cell

Endoplasmic Reticulum

A dense, highly branched network of interconnected, membrane-bound tubules, canals, cisternae, and vesicles distributed throughout the Cytoplasm forms The Endoplasmic reticulum. The membranes of the endoplasmic reticulum form a continuous system with the nuclear envelope membrane; at the same time, they do not connect with either the Plasmalemma or the tonoplast. The endoplasmic reticulum membranes of adjacent Cells are interconnected by tubules passing through plasmodesmata via pores in The Cell wall.

Two Types of endoplasmic reticulum are distinguished: rough (granular) and smooth (agranular). The surface of the rough reticulum, which is formed primarily by cisternae, is studded with Ribosomes. METABOLISM/35.html">Protein Biosynthesis takes place here, with the polypeptide chain being translocated into the lumen of the endoplasmic reticulum structures. The smooth endoplasmic reticulum is formed mainly by tubules lacking ribosomes on their outer surface. It is the site of carbohydrate biosynthesis (Polysaccharides, particularly Cellulose) as well as lipid synthesis.

The membranes of the endoplasmic reticulum contain numerous diverse enzyme systems, which is crucial for cellular metabolism. Young and protein-rich cells are typically characterized by a predominance of rough endoplasmic reticulum, whereas old cells rich in Introduction/36.html">CARBOHYDRATES and Lipids tend to have a smooth reticulum. During Cell Division, the endoplasmic reticulum undergoes partial fragmentation, after which a rough reticulum is formed that subsequently transforms into a smooth reticulum and, potentially, into the structures of the Golgi apparatus—vesicles that give rise to dictyosome cisternae.

From a functional perspective, the endoplasmic reticulum provides intracellular and intercellular transport, the synthesis of Proteins, lipids, and polysaccharides along with their delivery to various PARTS OF THE cell, and the assembly of cellular membranes.



Last update: 07/08/2026

Editorial and Educational Adaptation: This material has been compiled based on the primary/original source text. The project team performed an editorial review, corrected technical inaccuracies, structured sections, and adapted the content for an educational format.

What was processed:

  • elimination of formatting defects (OCR errors, structural breaks, corrupted characters);
  • editorial organization of content;
  • standardization of terminology in accordance with academic sources;
  • verification of factual statements against the original source text.

All mentions of the author, publication year, and origin of the primary text have been preserved in accordance with the source.