To protect the plant from herbivores.
Answers. Best Answer: Reading some arbitrary definition of a crystal might get confusing so I'll simplify it. What you are thinking of are the chemical compound called calcium oxalate. They form needle shaped crystals in a plant cell's vacuole that pretty much look like toothpicks. Their main function is to protect the plant from herbivores. They aren't chemically poisonous but because of their shape, they can prick soft tissue. When an herbivore eat a part of the plant, the vacuoles are smashed up and these needle like crystals are exposed along with the sap of the plant. Perhaps you've been exposed to these crystals when you squeeze a part of a plant and touch its sap. The vacuole is surrounded by a membrane (tonoplast). Back to the water balloon in the box model-imagine the vacuole to be analogous to another water balloon inside our protoplast balloon. This water balloon is a separate entity that can be physically removed from the cell. A. The Box This part of the cell is analogous to the cell wall. Like a cardboard box, the cell wall is relatively rigid, it is non-living and highly structured. Its more obvious functions are to support and protect the cell. It is produced by the protoplast (see below). The mitochondria are the power plant of the cell. They are small (1-5 m m) and generally numerous (500-2000 per cell). A popular misconception is that plants have chloroplasts, animals have mitochondria.. Plant cells, at least green plant cells (i.e., leaf cells), have both. Root cells only have mitochondria. A. The Box This part of the cell is analogous to the cell wall. Like a cardboard box, the cell wall is relatively rigid, it is non-living and highly structured. Its more obvious functions are to support and protect the cell. It is produced by the protoplast (see below). Raphides are found in specialized plant cells or crystal chambers called idioblasts. Electron micrographs have shown that raphide needle crystals are normally four sided or H-shaped (with a groove down both sides) or with a hexagonal cross section and some are barbed. The crystals are produced in an intriguing variety of shapes. The crystal morphology depends on the taxonomic group of the plant. In one study of over 100 species, it was found that calcium oxalate accounted for 6.3% of plant dry weight. Many plants accumulate calcium oxalate crystals in response to surplus calcium, which is found throughout the natural environment. The crystals are produced in an intriguing variety of shapes. The crystal morphology depends on the taxonomic group of the plant. In one study of over 100 species, it was found that calcium oxalate accounted for 6.3% of plant dry weight. Most druse crystals found in plants are made of calcium oxalate star-like in shape. They are thought to deter herbivory, and a number of species of plants are poisonous to humans, as well as animals, due to the high calcium oxalate. 1 Five Beautiful Pictures of Crystals A crystal is a solid whose molecules and atoms are arranged in an orderly way, homogeneously throughout the solid itself. 2  They usually have characteristic shapes and form typ…. 3  How to Grow Crystals Growing crystals is a fun science experiment anyone can do at home. The cells in which vacuolar crystals aredeposited are often specialized for crystal for-mation and are referred to as crystal idioblasts(35).Insomeplants,crystalsaredepositedinthevacuoles of otherwise normal cell types such asstorage parenchyma, bundle sheath cells, epi-dermal cells, or chlorenchyma. Calcium enteringan organ, such as a leaf, with the xylem stream is distributed among cellsvia the apoplast (wall). Most cells regulate Ca levels by pumping it back out orby compartmentation, but crystal idioblasts accumulate large amounts of Ca viathe activity of channels or pumps. Raphides in Epipremnum Devil's ivy (600x magnification). Raphides are needle-shaped crystals of calcium oxalate as the monohydrate or calcium carbonate as aragonite, found in more than 200 families of plants. Both ends are needle-like, but raphides tend to be blunt at one end and sharp at the other. The crystals are produced in an intriguing variety of shapes. The crystal morphology depends on the taxonomic group of the plant. In one study of over 100 species, it was found that calcium oxalate accounted for 6.3% of plant dry weight. (a clear rigid molecular covering around the cell that gives it complete c … ontrol what does in and out of the cell.) if the ruse crystal fails to stop the harmful virus or bacteria, the cell collapse and shuts down killing the bacteria inside of it so it doesn't spread to other cells. Feel free to ask any questions! 1 Five Beautiful Pictures of Crystals A crystal is a solid whose molecules and atoms are arranged in an orderly way, homogeneously throughout the solid itself. 2  They usually have characteristic shapes and form typ…. 3  How to Grow Crystals Growing crystals is a fun science experiment anyone can do at home.
https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20081026114550AAddboT http://www.employees.csbsju.edu/ssaupe/biol327/Lecture/cells.htm http://www.employees.csbsju.edu/ssaupe/biol327/Lecture/cells.htm https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raphide https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raphide http://www.answers.com/Q/What_are_the_functions_of_druse_crystals_in_plants http://www.annualreviews.org/doi/pdf/10.1146/annurev.arplant.56.032604.144106 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raphide http://www.answers.com/Q/What_are_the_functions_of_druse_crystals_in_plants
what is the function of crystals in plant cells