Originally published in German in 1929, E. Küster's book, entitled Pathologie der Pflanzenzelle, Teil 1: Pathologie des Protoplasmas describes and summarizes what was known at the time about the responses of cytoplasm and vacuoles in plant cells to severe experimental chemical and physical treatments.
Küster presents cytoplasmic phenomena such as solidification, vacuolization, swelling and changes in viscosity as well as cytoplasmic migration, stranding, tongue formation and wall attachments.
He also considers changes in configuration and properties of the vacuole and the vacuolar membrane and the partitioning and fusion of protoplasts. Considerable emphasis is given to plasmolysis.
Additional experimental treatments include: light, narrow light beams, pressure deformation, alkali salt solutions, electrical pulses, microsurgical procedures and centrifugation.
In an appendix, Küster discusses the effects of chemical fixatives, tannin precipitations in cell sap, and the transport of foreign substances into protoplasts.
To provide a comprehensive reference to early literature a list of 523 citations with original and translated titles, an extensive subject index, and a complete author index (264 entries) were added to the original text.
The book is a classic for anybody interested in historical aspects of the knowledge on plant cell protoplasmic reactions.

Originally published in German in 1929 by Gebrüder Borntraeger in Berlin. --- E. Küster's book, entitled Pathologie der Pflanzenzelle Part I: Pathologie des Protoplasmas describes and summarizes what was known at the time about the responses of cytoplasm and vacuoles in plant cells to severe experimental chemical and physical treatments.

Küster presents cytoplasmic phenomena such as solidification, vacuolization, swelling and changes in viscosity as well as cytoplasmic migration, stranding, tongue formation and wall attachments. He also considers changes in configuration and properties of the vacuole and the vacuolar membrane and the partitioning and fusion of protoplasts. Considerable emphasis is given to plasmolysis. Additional experimental treatments include: light, narrow light beams, pressure deformation, alkali salt solutions, electrical pulses, microsurgical procedures and centrifugation. In an appendix, Küster discusses effects of chemical fixatives, tannin precipitations in cell sap, and the import of foreign substances into protoplasts.

To provide a comprehensive reference to early literature a list of 523 citations with original and translated titles, an extensive subject index, and a complete author index (264 entries) were added to the original text.